The Lion King’s Simba and Nala are probably half-siblings and we’re creeped out

The Lion King is one of the most celebrated Disney movies ever, winning two Oscars, two Golden Globes and a Grammy and becoming a generation’s favourite animated film. Unfortunately, we can’t have anything nice in the world, which is why it’s been ruined with a theory about incest. Fans of the 1994 classic and enemies of happiness have pointed out that facts about lions and their mating rituals mean that Simba and Nala are actually half-siblings – despite going on to have a cub together. In The Lion King, King of the Pride Lands Mufasa is the only grown male mentioned in the pride, other than his little brother Scar, who lives on the edge of the community and is more or less isolated. In the real-life wilderness, lion prides usually have a small number of males, or just one, due to competition between the males. This means that the solitary male is responsible for all the mating in the pride.

Cut to The Lion King, where Mufasa is essentially chilling with his harem. We know Mufasa fathered Simba with his wife Sarabi, but could he also have fathered Nala? In the scene where Simba is being bathed by his mother, we see Nala and her mother Sarafina in the same pride – so it’s entirely possible that Simba and Nala shared the same dad, before going off to fall in love with Can You Feel The Love Tonight playing in the background. Even if Scar were Nala’s father – which we doubt, seeing as she bears no resemblance – they would still be cousins, which is pretty grim.

Much like other classic films ruined by home truths, The Lion King now has the ick factor. We doubt the incest theory will be explored too much in the CGI remake, starring Donald Glover and Beyonce as the grown-up Simba and Nala. The first reviews for The Lion King have been pretty positive, despite some people being worried that Beyonce sounded too much like Beyonce while doing her voiceover.

      Beyonce and Donald Glover voice the new Nala and Simba (Picture: Disney via AP)

The remake also stars Chiwetel Ejiofor as Scar, Seth Rogen as Pumbaa, Billy Eichner as Timon and John Oliver as Zazu, while James Earl Jones has returned as the voice of Mufasa. The Lion King is in cinemas on 19 July.

Source: Metro.co.uk