2019 seems like an eternity ago. But on July 24th of last year, Jon Favreau released his groundbreaking remake ofThe Lion Kingto much acclaim and big box office numbers. Now, one year later, star of that movie, Beyonce, is unleashing a new visual album based on the music she created forThe Lion King. CalledBlack Is King, we have the official trailer and a new poster celebrating the upcoming streaming release, which hits Disney+ exclusively on July 31.
Today, Parkwood Entertainment andDisney+released the new trailer and poster forBlack Is King, a film by 24-time GRAMMY® Award-winnerBeyoncé Knowles-Carter, which will premiere globally on July 10, 2025, streaming on Disney+. The new film based on the music ofThe Lion King: The Gift, will premiere two weeks after the one-year anniversary of the theatrical release of Disney’s global phenomenon,The Lion King. The film reimagines the lessons from the 2019 blockbuster for today’s young kings and queens in search of their own crowns.
Simultaneously, a distribution deal was announced to makeBlack Is King"available on much of the African Continent, including South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana, Ethiopia, Namibia, Cameroon, Liberia, Burundi, Senegal, Togo, Somalia, Benin, Congo, Kenya, Ivory Coast, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Gabon, Cape Verde and many more countries through MultiChoice Group’s M-Net and Canal+ Afrique.
Black Is Kingwas in production for one year and features an impressive list of diverse voices on its creative team, including directors Emmanuel Adjei (the filmShahmaran), Blitz Bazawule (the filmThe Burial of Kojo), Pierre Debusschere (MineandGhostvideos for Beyoncé), Jenn Nkiru (Black to Technofilm), Ibra Ake (creative director and producer on “This is America” video for Childish Gambino), Dikayl Rimmasch (Cachao, Uno Masfilm), Jake Nava (“Crazy in Love,” “Single Ladies,” “Partition” videos for Beyoncé) and co-director and long-time collaborator of Beyoncé, Kwasi Fordjour.
The list of additional co-directors and second unit directors adds to the crew’s global representation, including Dafe Oboro, Julian Klincewicz, Derek Milton, Meji Alabi, Joshua Kissi, Alexandre Moors and Deon Van Zyl.
Filmed in various locations, the film’s cinematography captures beautiful people and landscapes across continents, starting in New York, then Los Angeles, South Africa, West Africa, London and Belgium. From all those places came an extraordinary cast of actors and dancers that influenced the film’s rich tableau and vibrant choreography.
The new trailer provides a glimpse of some of the special guests in the film. They include models Aweng Ade-Chuol and Adut Akech, supermodel Naomi Campbell, Tina Knowles-Lawson, author and Academy Award®-winning actor Lupita Nyong’o, singer Kelly Rowland, Pharrell Williams and JAY-Z, among others. Many artists featured onThe Lion KingThe Gift album also make appearances.
Acelebratory memoir for the world on the black experience, “Black Is King” includes full-length videos for the songs “Already,” “Brown Skin Girl,” “Mood 4 Eva” and “My Power,” which is heard in the new trailer.
