In this April 7, 2016, file photo, Jon Favreau attends a special screening of "The Jungle Book," hosted by Disney and The Cinema Society, at AMC Empire 25 in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP, File)
NEW YORK (AP) --
The animated classic "The Lion King" will be the latest Disney film to get a live-action remake.
Disney announced Wednesday that Jon Favreau, who helmed the box-office hit "Jungle Book" remake, will direct the new "Lion King." He's also at work on a "Jungle Book" sequel.
The circle of life now inevitably leads to live-action remakes for Disney classics. The new "Lion King" follows in the wake of similar remakes for "The Jungle Book," ''Cinderella," ''Pete's Dragon" and the upcoming "Beauty and the Beast."
The original 1994 "Lion King" grossed $968.8 million and won two Oscars, including one for the Elton John song "Can You Feel the Love Tonight." The Grammy-winning soundtrack sold more than 14 million copies. And the hit Broadway musical has been running for 19 years.
Cynthia Erivo attends the National Board of Review Awards gala at Cipriani 42nd Street on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
Cynthia Erivo, who is starring in the hit musical "Wicked," was named Tuesday as the 2025 Woman of the Year by Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Theatricals.
The theater group, which dates to 1844 and claims to be the world's third-oldest still operating, said Erivo will receive her Pudding Pot award at a celebratory roast Feb. 5. Afterward, she will attend a performance of Hasty Pudding Theatricals' 176th production, "101 Damnations." Actor Jon Hamm, who came to fame starring as ad executive Don Draper on the AMC series "Mad Men," is the 2025 Man of the Year. He will receive his Pudding Pot Jan. 31.
"We are holding space for Cynthia Erivo's arrival," Man and Woman of the Year Events Coordinator Hannah Frazer said in a statement. "We're sweeping out our broomstick closets and prepping some wicked smart humor as we eagerly await her in February. Before she flies off with her Pudding Pot, she'll have to work a little magic to earn it."
Along with starirng in the smash hit musical, the British entertainer is a two-time Oscar nominee and an Emmy Award, Tony Award and Grammy Award winner.
Erivo burst onto the scene with her brilliant performance in the Broadway revival of "The Color Purple." winning her the 2016 Tony for best actress in a musical. She performed songs from the play on the "Today" show, earning the Daytime Emmy for outstanding music performance in a daytime program. And the show's soundtrack won best musical theater album at the 2017 Grammys.
Last year, Erivo starred in and produced "Drift," which follows a young Liberian refugee who has escaped her war-torn country to a Greek island. In 2021, Erivo was nominated for an Emmy for her portrayal of Aretha Franklin in the National Geographic series "Genius:... Read More
