Elton John came down hard on Disney’s remake of “The Lion King” from earlier this year, calling the film a “huge disappointment” and saying that the creative team specifically “messed the music up” that he wrote for the original animated film.
The legendary pop star sat for an interview with British GQ and said the “magic and joy were lost” from the new film, and he wished he was more involved in the creative process.
“The new version of ‘The Lion King’ was a huge disappointment to me, because I believe they messed the music up,” John told the magazine on Sunday. “Music was so much a part of the original and the music in the current film didn’t have the same impact. The magic and joy were lost.”
Jon Favreau’s live-action remake of “The Lion King” used John’s music that he co-wrote with lyricist Tim Rice, including the songs “Can You Feel the Love Tonight,” “Be Prepared,” “Hakuna Matata,” “I Just Can’t Wait To Be King” and “Circle of Life,” and John and Rice actually wrote a new song called “Never Too Late” that appeared during the film’s ending credits.
Pharrell Williams ultimately oversaw the music for the new film and its soundtrack, updating some of Rice’s lyrics and John’s music, naturally with new recordings by the film’s stars Donald Glover, Beyoncé, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Seth Rogen and Billy Eichner. And Beyoncé contributed a new song for the film and soundtrack called “Spirit.” Despite those heavy hitters, John was further disappointed the film’s soundtrack didn’t have the same chart-topping success as the original.
“The soundtrack hasn’t had nearly the same impact in the charts that it had 25 years ago, when it was the bestselling album of the year,” he said. “The new soundtrack fell out of the charts so quickly, despite the massive box-office success. I wish I’d been invited to the party more, but the creative vision for the film and its music was different this time around and I wasn’t really welcomed or treated with the same level of respect. That makes me extremely sad. I’m so happy that the right spirit for the music lives on with the ‘Lion King’ stage musical.”
Back in 2018, John was hopeful that he and Rice might end up collaborating with Beyoncé on her song, but the partnership never panned out. Still, his upbeat, Motown-influenced track “Never Too Late” would be eligible for the Best Original Song category at this year’s Oscars, where John would have to compete not only with Beyoncé, but also another of his own tracks written for the biopic “Rocketman.”
Check out John’s full interview with British GQ here.
10 Stars Who Just Need an Emmy to EGOT, From Elton John to Stephen Sondheim (Photos)
The EGOT -- an acronym for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony -- is among the greatest and most elusive honors in entertainment. These stars are (or were) close to achieving it.
Elton John, composer and musician (1947-) Grammy: Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group, "That's What Friends Are For" (1986); Best Instrumental Composition, "Basque" (1991); Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" (1994); Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, "Candle in the Wind" (1997); Best Show Album, "Aida" (2000) Oscar: Best Original Son, "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" from "The Lion King" (1994) Tony: Best Score, "Aida" (2000)
Stephen Sondheim, composer and lyricist (1930-) Grammy: Best Show Album, "Company" (1970); Best Show Album, "A Little Night Music" (1973); Song of the Year, "Send in the Clowns" (1975); Best Show Album, "Sweeney Todd" (1979); Best Show Album, "Sunday in the Park With George" (1984); Best Cast Show Album, "Into the Woods" (1988); Best Show Album, "Passion" (1994); Oscar: Best Original Song, "Sooner Or Later (I Always Get My Man)" from "Dick Tracy" (1990) Tony: Best Musical, "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," (1963); Best Score and Best Lyrics, "Company" (1971); Best Score, "Follies" (1972); Best Score, "A Little Night Music" (1973); Best Score, "Sweeney Todd" (1979); Best Score, "Into the Woods" (1988); Best Score, "Passion" (1994)
Joel Grey, actor (1932 - )
Grammy (2): Best Musical Theater Album, "Cabaret" (1968) and "Chicago" (1998)
Oscar: Supporting Actor, "Cabaret" (1972)
Tony: Featured Actor in a Musical, "Cabaret" (1967)
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Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, composers (both 1985 - ) Grammy: Best Musical Theater Album, "Dear Evan Hansen" (2018) Oscar: Best Original Song, "La La Land" (2017) Tony: Best Original Score, "Dear Evan Hansen" (2017)
Henry Fonda, actor (1905-82) Grammy: Best Spoken Word Album, "Great Documents" (1977) Oscar: Best Actor, "On Golden Pond" (1981) Tony: Best Actor, "Mister Roberts" (1948); Best Actor, "Clarence Darrow" (1975)
Oscar Hammerstein II, lyricist and producer (1895-1960) Grammy: Best Original Cast Album, "The Sound of Music" (1960) Oscar: Best Original Song, "The Last Time I Saw Paris" from "Lady Be Good" (1941); "It Might As Well Be Spring" from "State Fair" (1945) Tony: Three awards for "South Pacific" (1950); Best Musical, "The King and I" (1952); Best Musical, "The Sound of Music" (1960)
Alan Jay Lerner, lyricist and writer (1918-86) Grammy: Best Original Cast Album, "On a Clear Day" (1965) Oscar: Best Original Screenplay, "An American in Paris" (1951); Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Original Song, "Gigi" (1958) Tony: Best Musical, "My Fair Lady" (1957); Best Original Score, "Gigi" (1974)
Frank Loesser, composer (1910-69) Grammy: Best Cast Album, "How to Succeed..." (1961) Oscar: Best Song, "Baby, It's Cold Outside" from "Neptune's Daughter" (1949) Tony: Best Musical, "Guys and Dolls" (1951); Best Musical, "How to Succeed..." (1962)
Jule Styne, composer and songwriter (1905-94) Grammy: Best Cast Album, "Funny Girl" (1964) Oscar: Best Song, "Three Coins in the Fountain" (1954) Tony: Best Musical and Best Score, "Hallelujah Baby" (1968)
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A select group of entertainers can round out their trophy cases with a competitive win from the Television Academy
The EGOT -- an acronym for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony -- is among the greatest and most elusive honors in entertainment. These stars are (or were) close to achieving it.
