The original animated The Lion King film was released in 1994. Walt Disney Pictures gave it a limited theatrical release on June 15, followed by a wide release in the United States and Canada on June 24.
Directed by Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff, the film became one of Disney’s defining productions of the 1990s. Its voice cast included Matthew Broderick as adult Simba, James Earl Jones as Mufasa, Jeremy Irons as Scar, and Rowan Atkinson as Zazu. The film combined traditional animation with a dramatic story influenced in part by Hamlet and African wildlife imagery.
Its release year is sometimes confused with later entries in the franchise. The direct-to-video sequel The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride arrived in 1998, while The Lion King 1½ followed in 2004. Disney also released a computer-animated remake in 2019, which is a separate film rather than the original production.
The 1994 film won Academy Awards for Hans Zimmer’s score and the song “Can You Feel the Love Tonight.” In 2016, the Library of Congress selected it for preservation in the National Film Registry.