The Lion King Simba is given some valuable perspective from his childhood friend, Nala, and his shaman, Rafiki, before returning to challenge Scar to end his tyranny and take his place in the Circle of Life as the rightful King. Development of "The Lion King" began in 1988 during a meeting between Jeffrey Katzenberg, Roy E. Disney, and Peter Schneider while promoting "Oliver & Company" in Europe. Thomas Disch wrote a film treatment, and Woolverton developed the first scripts, while George Scribner was signed on as director, being later joined by Allers. Production began in 1991 concurrently with "Pocahontas", which wound up attracting
Criticism of The Walt Disney Company a little kid," said Broderick. "So I kept telling everybody I was going to play Kimba. I didn't really know anything about it, but I didn't really care." In addition, a memo written by Roy E. Disney in July 1993 refers to Simba as "Kimba," causing critics to claim that Disney was aware of the similarities. Upon the release of "The Lion King" in Japan, multiple Japanese cartoonists including Machiko Satonaka signed a letter urging the Walt Disney Company acknowledge due credit to "Jungle Emperor Leo" in the making of "The Lion King". As Tim Hornyak wrote in "The Japan