It is probably The Lion King the Disney title that has lent itself the most to political theory since its release in 1994. And, true to that, its prequel was born 30 years later. Because, under its childish and family premise, Mufasa also encompasses the political. In its story, an orphaned lion arrives in an unknown land and is met with distrust by much of its population. And so it speaks of migrations. A cub is raised among females and another among males. And so it speaks of patriarchy. An animal born with nothing will dominate everything. And so it speaks of meritocracy. We could continue with racism, different types of families...
All these debates present in our times have been shaped by Barry Jenkins (Miami, 1979) over three and a half years at the helm of the new installment of the saga. The project was delayed in 2023 due to the writers' strikes and will finally hit Spanish theaters on December 20. Once again, politics. "I assumed that Disney came to me because they wanted someone who would respect the legacy of these characters but also give it my personal touch," says who directed Moonlight on his first trip to Spain to present his return to the big screen since 2018.
"I have lived a lot, especially in the last ten years. Winning the Oscar the way we did publicly with the envelope puts you in fashion in a way. So I can't be afraid to be myself doing this. If it had been ten years ago, maybe I would have, but now I wanted something that was very fun, I have done too many dark things." Although Mufasa is also dark. Because, again, this is not just family cinema. "I am sure that in this country there are many deeply rooted political beliefs on both sides, and yet, all those children watch the same TV shows or movies. And that can be extended globally. There are very few things that can do that, The Lion King is one, like Messi, Mbappé, Jordan, Star Wars or Star Trek."
And those children will see the story of Mufasa, which led to The Lion King in 1994. And, just like those who spent their childhood with that will see a lion who will eventually become king. And everything else will be in the background. "This film is dominated by a matriarchy, and that was a really beautiful yin and yang with the very patriarchal 1994 film. And by this, I'm not saying that all men raised by women turn out to be good." Because Mufasa was raised among females and the one raised among males will be Taka - it is evident who he will become. "I have friends who have been raised by really great fathers, raised in a certain patriarchy that turned them into very good citizens."
Here Jenkins focuses the debate on the dichotomy between upbringing and nature. And, therefore, towards family. "Mufasa is an orphan and sometimes I feel like one too. For me, family is the one we form. In the family I feel closest to, many are not blood relatives but people I met through the creation of art, through a common purpose of caring for the world. That's why in the nature versus nurture debate, I am a big fan of nurture."
Probably because if it were the other way around, he wouldn't be here. Just remember Moonlight, a crack-addicted mother and an absent father. A kid trying to make it in a marginalized neighborhood in Miami. That's Barry Jenkins. "I wouldn't be here with you if I didn't believe in the aspirational discourse seeing how I grew up. We are in a very elegant hotel, I'm wearing very nice boots, none of this shit should have happened based on where I was born, it shouldn't have ended like this."
And he continues: "That's why we decided that Mufasa doesn't have to be just this great prince, a perfect father, blah blah blah. We don't need perfect things to create good citizens, we don't need the perfect setting, private schools, and a lot of money to create human beings who grow up to be leaders. That is the opposite of what we need, we actually need more people coming from the margins, people who live the experience of the majority of citizens in an average government culture, people who are just trying to make a living. We need those people to use their experience at the top of some of these structures, not at the very top because everything should be collective. But we need these people to succeed so others can do the same. So they can show who we are, worthy citizens who can sit in a luxury hotel like this and have a very deep conversation."
Fate also dictated that the delay of the film due to the strikes in Hollywood would lead to its release almost in parallel with Donald Trump's presidency after his election victory. "He is not yet the president, and he was before, we know his policies. Since I started voting, there have been like six presidential elections and always with changes. I have to be optimistic, the glass half full and the glass half empty. Between Moonlight and Mufasa, I have gone from Obama to Trump, to Biden and now back to Trump. "And the only constant is that we all breathe the same air, but it's getting hotter everywhere. What's important to me is to talk about this movie regardless of who the president is. Because when I started this movie, Trump was president and then Joe Biden won the elections."
Also, during the lengthy process until the film became what it is, Barry Jenkins experienced the sudden death of his mother, without having her around. That crack-addicted mother who later got clean. "That didn't affect the movie because it happened in the summer of 2023, and by then I had been working on it for three and a half years. What it did was confirm that these matriarchal dynamics in the film were very significant and very spiritual," explains the director, who almost saw this work as "therapy." "I have often talked about my nephews who watched the 1994 film and it was the first time they had to deal with the idea of losing their parents. I have been making this movie in which these characters have to deal with the idea of losing their mothers. And in a way, it was as if I had been in therapy for three years before it happened. "If it helped me with the experience I am going through, maybe someone will see it and it will help them experience it."