Did you know that the lion king Nala is the daughter of Simba and Mufasa? If you haven’t seen the most recent adaptation of the film, you’re probably confused. Here are some lesser-known facts about Nala that you probably didn’t know.
Nala is the deuteragonist in Disney’s 1994 animated feature film The Lion King. Simba, the Pride Lands’ prince, loves her as his longtime best friend. When Scar and his hyena minions take over the kingdom, Nala protests by assisting Simba in reclaiming the throne. She later marries Simba and has two cubs named Kiara and Kion.
Nala is among the most important characters in The Lion King, and not just because she is saved. Nala is the one who forces Simba to face his responsibilities in a way that no other Disney Princess has done before. Simba’s development in The Lion King is influenced by Nala’s wisdom and logic rather than her beauty or charm. To understand more about this interesting character, read below!
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The Lion King Nala Physical appearance
The Lion King Nala is a slim cream-colored lioness with turquoise eyes. She had a pink nose as a cub, but as an adult, her nose is brown. Tan hair covers the inside of her ears and a little tuft of fur on her tail. She is depicted to have matured, remaining well-fed as she got older and resembling her mother in looks.
The Lion King Nala is a female lion
Nala is a lioness in the lion king characters. She is presently the queen consort of Pride Rock due to her marriage to Simba. She is Sarafina’s daughter and Simba’s partner, with whom she had a son, Kion, and a daughter, Kiara.
Nala was betrothed to Simba, the royal heir of Pride Rock, as a cub. Throughout their youth, the two were great friends. They were separated for several years when Scar lied to the pride that Simba was dead. The Pride Lands were in disorder during Scar’s reign, so Nala sought protection outside the kingdom in The lion king’s characters.
During her adventure, she stumbled and discovered a fully grown Simba, with whom she had a happy reunion. She convinced him to reclaim his birthright, and despite his reservations, he eventually traveled to the Pride Lands and challenged Scar’s right to govern. Scar and his hyena friends fought with Nala and the rest of her pride. After the pride’s victory, she met Simba as her new king and became his mate and queen.
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The Lion King Nala was born to an unnamed male lion and Sarafina
Nala was the daughter of an unknown male lion and Sarafina. She was a member of Mufasa’s pride and resided in the Pride Lands. She was engaged to Simba, the royal heir of Pride Rock, according to Pride Lands’ monarchy rule. Throughout their youth, the two were great friends.
Simba and Nala relationship
Nala is introduced as the daughter of an unidentified lion and Sarafina, Simba’s best friend, and eventually becomes his wife as well as Mufasa and Sarabi’s daughter-in-law and Scar’s niece-in-law at the end of The Lion King. Nala marries Simba and becomes his Queen.
Nala and Simba had the same father
Like any other family, right? However, lions’ natural homes imply that Simba and Nala are half-brother and half-sister through a shared father – the Pride Lands’ monarch, Mufasa.
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The lion king Nala And Simba Were Almost First Cousins
It’s wonderful that Nala and Simba’s love story is unlike any previous Disney film, but this was almost the case for completely different reasons. Nala’s mother (Sarafina) was known as Naanda at one point in time, and Nalanda was Simba’s mother’s sister (Sarabi). This essentially indicates that Nala and Simba are first cousins in The Lion King.
Furthermore, in the real world, lionesses from the same pack all have offspring from the same lion, implying that Sarabi and Sarafina might have both had children from Mufasa, making Simba and Nala siblings. Overall, The Lion King (1994) establishes that Sarafina and Sarabi are simply friends, as are Nala and Simba.
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The lion king Nala And Simba Visit to the Elephant Graveyard
When Simba ran inside the Pride Rock den to wake Mufasa, he sprinted past Nala, who was sleeping in Sarafina’s paws. Sarafina bathed Nala later that day. Simba welcomed her and then whispered to her that he had just heard about a fantastic location that they might visit. Nala, with clenched teeth, pointed out that she was in the middle of a bath, and Sarabi took advantage of Nala’s comments to grab Simba and give him his wash.
While her mother bathed her lower back, Nala said that the location they were heading to best not be “stupid.” Sarabi became concerned after Simba informed her that it was a “very amazing” place. Simba informed his mother that the location was near the water hole, which elicited Nala’s dissatisfaction. Simba promised to show her when they arrived, and Nala requested her mother for permission to play with Simba. Sarabi was then requested to let the cubs go. The lioness agreed, but only if they brought Zazu along as a nanny. They were taken aback by this.
As the cubs and Zazu approached the water hole, Nala inquired about their actual destination, which Simba informed her was an Elephant Graveyard. Nala was excited, but Simba shushed her and reminded her that Zazu was only above them. When Nala questioned how they were going to get rid of him, the two cubs began to mumble a plan to each other, which Zazu mistook for romance.
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Nala has been very brave
As the hyenas approached the cubs, Nala hid behind Simba, who used his kittenish growl to scare the hyenas away. Mufasa rushed to the rescue, drowning out Simba’s roar with his own, which was far louder. He then battered, pinched, and terrified the hyenas away. When the hyenas were gone, he turned his rage on Simba for disobeying him. As the troop dispersed, Nala softly expressed her admiration for Simba’s bravery. The cubs wandered silently across the Pride Lands after leaving the Elephant Graveyard. Mufasa eventually hesitated and directed Zazu to take Nala home. Nala exited with Zazu, casting one more pitying gaze at Simba.
Disney recorded Moira Kelly's facial expressions to aid with the animation of Nala.
Throughout her recording sessions, Disney recorded Moira Kelly’s facial expressions, and many of those emotions were used in the animation of Nala. Of course, this is a standard technique for most animated films. However, given that Kelly was introduced to the ensemble far later than usual, it is unusual for Disney to take the time to change how Nala spoke this far into the film.
Furthermore, Moira Kelly was taken aback by how many of her “facial peculiarities” appeared in the animation, despite the fact that this was an animal-only feature film. At the time, applying human emotions to animated animals was a different sort of challenge than in The Little Mermaid or Aladdin.
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The Lion King Nala Reunion with Simba
Many seasons later, when Scar and his hyena minions had turned the Pride Lands into a wasteland, a fully grown Nala traveled to the forest for assistance. When Pumbaa got too far away from his companion Timon, she pursued him mercilessly. She masterfully kept up with the warthog as he turned and twisted to put her off balance.
Simba raced at her and assaulted her just as she was ready to murder both him and Timon. Simba tackled her, and she performed her signature move on him, pinning him to the ground. This prompted Simba to recognize her. When he said her name, she stood up and looked at him, puzzled. He identified himself as Simba when she questioned his identity.
When Nala saw her old pal, the two exchanged happy greetings and inquired as to what they were doing in the bush. Timon, perplexed, interrupted the conversation and wanted to know what was going on. Simba presented Nala to his two friends, who were happy to meet her.
The Lion King Nala Battle of Pride Rock
Nala came up to Simba after he crossed the desert and saw his shattered habitat. She questioned him why he had returned. Simba responded that he had finally had “some sense pounded into” him, and Nala promised to assist him in his quest for the Pride Lands. Simba told her that it would be perilous, but she responded by laughing in the face of danger, echoing what Simba had said as a youngster. When Timon and Pumbaa arrived, the four of them set off for Pride Rock. Simba and Nala were able to slip past the hyenas with the assistance of Timon and Pumbaa, and Simba urged Nala to find Sarabi and rally the lionesses while he hunted for Scar.
Simba emerged victorious from his fight with Scar and embraced both Sarabi and Nala
Simba ultimately won over Scar and hugged both Sarabi and Nala. He then ascended to his rightful seat as King. As he ascended Pride Rock and roared over his reclaimed kingdom, the lionesses cheered. In response to his roar, the lionesses screamed.
Nala had a cub with Simba after the Pride Lands had been restored to their former glory. Simba and Nala, together with Timon and Pumbaa, stood proudly on the ledge of Pride Rock, surveying the animals below. Rafiki emerged, holding the newborn infant, and Simba and Nala smiled as he presented the youngster to the Pride Lands’ wildlife.
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The Lion King II: Simba's Pride Nala
Nala is both Simba’s partner and Kiara’s mother in this film. She appears to have aged and has a more developed frame. Her eyes look to be bluer as well. She is initially seen joyfully watching Kiara’s presentation.
She reappears a few months later when Kiara is out for play, telling Kiara to keep an eye on her father and assuring Simba that she would be OK. Simba is subsequently accompanied by Nala, Timon, Pumbaa, and two lionesses when he tries to collect Kiara after she wanders off and confronts Zira when the banished lioness is discovered in the Pride Lands with her son Kovu, whom Kiara befriended. Simba remains behind to reprimand Kiara while Nala and the others return to Pride Rock.
In 1994, four different actresses played Nala.
Nala was portrayed by four different women in the 1994 film The Lion King. Moira Kelly, as previously stated, provided her voice for the speech parts of Adult Nala but did not do any of the singing. Adult Nala’s singing voice was instead provided by vocalist Sally Dworsky. Dworsky also provided the singing voices for Miriam in The Prince of Egypt in 1998 and Princess Fiona in Shrek in 2001. Niketa Calame-Harris portrayed Young Nala’s speaking parts in the film, which accounts for a large chunk of the character’s screen time. Laura Williams, on the other hand, provided Young Nala’s singing voice.
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Beyonce was always the favorite to play Nala in the 2019 remake.
Variety Magazine reported in 2017 that Beyonce was director Jon Favreau’s preferred pick to play Nala in the 2019 Lion King remake. However, because Beyonce was not renowned for focusing her energies on acting (her most recent appearance on the big screen was in 2009’s Obsessed), this didn’t appear to be an evident alignment of the stars.
Shahadi Wright Before the 2019 remake, Joseph has already portrayed Young Nala.
If you saw Hairspray Live! in 2016 or Us in 2019, you knew Shahadi Wright Joseph would be a fantastic Young Nala in the 2019 Lion King adaptation. However, many fans are unaware that the young actress had a link to the character even before the adaptation was revealed.
Shahadi Wright Joseph was cast as Young Nala in the Broadway production of The Lion King when she was nine years old (in 2014). When casting for the adaptation began in 2017, it was a no-brainer for director Jon Favreau to invite her back to reprise the part.
Nala's Voice Was Changed At The Last Moment By Disney The Lion king characters
Moira Kelly voiced Adult Nala’s speaking voice in The Lion King in 1994, however, she was not the initial choice for the part. In truth, another actress had been voicing Nala for quite some time, a woman who had even recorded lines with Matthew Broderick (who played Adult Simba) during his involvement with the film.
For some inexplicable reason, Disney was dissatisfied with the original voice of Nala and began organizing tryouts for different actresses to take the role. So Moira Kelly auditioned for Disney and was contacted back months later with the news that she had been cast.
Additional Resources:The Lion king Nala
- Learn more about the List of The Lion King (franchise) characters by visiting Wikipedia
- Find out more about Category: The Lion King characters – Disney Wiki facts by Disney.fandom
