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
The Lion King (franchise) theme from "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly". During its release in 1994, "The Lion King" was widely praised and acclaimed, grossing more than $783 million worldwide, becoming the most successful film released that year, and as of June 18, 2018 is the thirty-seventh highest-grossing feature film of all time. The film was the highest grossing animated film of all time until the release of Disney/Pixar's "Finding Nemo", a computer-animated film. "The Lion King" is still the highest grossing traditionally animated film of all time in the United States. The film received many award nominations. It won the Academy