Feel very connected to Simba’s journey: Donald Glover

Los Angeles, July 3 (IANS) Actor Donald Glover says "The Lion King" tells a very human and honest story -- something which everyone goes through.

The actor, who has lent his voice to the character of Simba in the live-action film, said it shows that traumatic things will happen, but people should not allow that to consume their entire life.

"I feel very connected to Simba's journey," Glover said in a statement.

"'The Lion King' is a very human and honest story of what all of us go through. I think that the story is such a beautiful way of showing how permanence is not the point. The point is to be here and to be responsible for each other and love each other. Traumatic things will happen - the point is not to allow that to consume your entire life. You can grow and learn from that experience," he added.

"The Jungle Book" fame director Jon Favreau has re-imagined the world of Disney's classic to bring alive a live-action film. He has stayed true to the classic story of Simba and used pioneering filmmaking techniques to bring the iconic characters to the big screen in a whole new way.

On working with Glover, Favreau said: "Donald is an amazing singer and a fantastic improviser, which is one of the things that drew me to him.

"He and I come from similar comedic roots. Donald came up with a lot of the people that I came up with on the Chicago improv scene, overlapping with UCB (Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre) and Tina Fey's world, so I knew that we were going to share a common approach in comedy and performance."

The director says he knew that Glover "would bring dynamism to the part, in the way he would creatively engage and that audiences would respond to him".

The film will release in India on July 19 in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.