Disney’s 2016 film The Jungle Book bases King Louie on Gigantopithecus, an extinct ape. The change gives the character a much larger physical scale than the orangutan-like figure seen in the 1967 animated film.
Gigantopithecus lived in Asia during the Pleistocene and is known mainly from fossil teeth and jaw fragments. Scientists generally regard it as a large ape, but the fossil record does not provide a complete picture of its appearance or behavior. The film therefore uses the name as a creative foundation rather than presenting a scientific reconstruction.
King Louie himself was not part of Kipling’s original Jungle Book stories. He was introduced in the 1967 Disney adaptation, and the 2016 movie reworked the character while retaining his interest in learning the secret of fire.