Two years on from Disney’s “The Jungle Book,” Warner Bros. presents its version of the Rudyard Kipling classic, set for an October 2019 release.
Like its 2016 predecessor, “Mowgli” tells the story of a young Indian boy raised by wolves who grows up as part of and separate from both human and jungle societies.
But its tone is somewhat darker than the Disney vision, and explores not only Mowgli’s struggles to adapt to jungle life but also his experiences as part of the human world.
Directed by Andy Serkis, who also plays Mowgli’s bear mentor, “Mowgli” stars 14-year-old Rohan Chand as its title character — he’s already experienced the highs and lows of Hollywood, having appeared in both double Oscar-nominated Afghanistan war film “Lone Survivor” and Adam Sandler’s Razzie Award record holder “Jack and Jill.”
Also starring in “Mowgli” are Peter Mullan (“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”) as wolf leader Akela, Christian Bale (“The Dark Knight”) as black panther Bagheera, Benedict Cumberbatch (“Doctor Strange”) as fearsome tiger Shere Khan, Cate Blanchett (“The Lord of the Rings”) as the snake Kaa, Naomie Harris (“Skyfall” and “Spectre”), Tom Hollander (“The Night Manager”), Eddie Marsan (“Ray Donovan”) and Jack Reynor (“Transformers: Age of Extinction”).
Freida Pinto (“Slumdog Millionaire”) plays a rich woman who believes Mowgli to be her lost son and Matthew Rhys is (“The Americans”) a new character for the film, hunter John Lockwood.
Jon Favreau’s 2016 Disney movie “The Jungle Book” generated a $966m worldwide box office return and won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. MKH
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