Hamlet and The Lion King

While watching the Hamlet movie in class, my mind began to wander a bit (sorry Ms. Maxey). I thought of other stories in which the king is killed by someone who then takes his spot on the throne. That's when it hit me -- The Lion King is the story of Hamlet! Sure enough, I googled the two classics and there were thousands of results comparing the likeness of the two stories. The similarities are undeniable. Both Scar and Claudius play an uncle who kills the king in order to take his spot on the throne. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are both good friends of Hamlet, similar to how Timone and Pumbaa are Simba's best friends. Both The Lion King and Hamlet tell the story of a prince who wishes to reclaim the throne from his uncle. Both Simba and Hamlet's dads die at the hands of their uncle and Simba and Hamlet both eventually fight their uncle to reclaim the throne. Until watching Hamlet in class, I had assumed The Lion King was an original Disney story. Regardless of whether its an adaptation or not, The Lion King is an incredible story and pays tribute to Shakespeare's talent while also showing the lasting power of his work. I think it is interesting to see just how many recent movies and books have been influenced or even completely stolen from old William.