The Lion King References in The Lion Guard

This page contains a list of all references made to The Lion King films in The Lion Guard.

The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar

 * It begins with a sunrise that is almost identical to the very beginning of The Lion King.
 * Simba and Kiara observing the sunrise from the peak of Pride Rock and their discussion mirrors the scene in the first film featuring young Simba and his father, Mufasa.
 * The way Janja is perched on the top on the volcano with his clan is similiar to the way Scar was on the peak with his hyena army in The Lion King.
 * Mufasa appears to Kion when he is in doubt, just as he appears to Simba shortly before he returns to reclaim his home.
 * After Rafiki informs Simba of Kion's readiness to face his destiny, he uses a quote of his from the original movie, "it is time".

The Rise of Makuu

 * When Kion consults his family after Makuu challenges Pua to a Mashindano, Nala reminds her son that his father, Simba, had fought Scar in order to reclaim the throne of the Pride Lands.

Can't Wait to be Queen

 * The title of the episode is a reference to the song "I Just Can't Wait to Be King" from the original movie.

The Kupatana Celebration

 * The way Kion lunges onto Janja to save Dogo is similar to when Simba lunges onto Nala to protect Timon and Pumbaa in The Lion King. In addition, Janja's expression when he sees Kion jumping towards him is very similar to Nala's when she saw Simba.

The Search for Utamu

 * Timon makes a reference to the original The Lion King film before he and Pumbaa adopt Bunga. Timon mentions that they already raised a lion, referring to how they had raised Simba.

The Call of the Drongo

 * The scene where Janja, Cheezi and Chungu watch the impalas from underneath a rock formation, as well as the scene of them overlooking the escaping impalas, is likely a reference to the original Lion King movie.

Bunga and the King

 * The song "Hakuna Matata", is a throwback to the original song from The Lion King.
 * The scene where Simba falls into the sinkhole is very similar to how his father plummets into the stampede in The Lion King.[1]

Janja's New Crew

 * The scene where Janja, Cheezi and Chungu slide down a hill and bump one after another references when Shenzi, Banzai and Ed do this same thing when chasing young Simba, after which Banzai falls into the thorns.

Lions of the Outlands

 * The way Zira fiddles with a jerboa as she sings Lions Over All is similar to Scar's behavior with a mouse in The Lion King II: Simba's Pride.[1]
 * The way Zira watches the cockroaches crawl across the rock and then swats them off is similar to what she did to termites in The Lion King II: Simba's Pride.[2]

The Trail to Udugu

 * At the beginning of the episode, Kiara pins Kion to the ground in the same way that Nala pinned Simba to the ground when they were cubs in The Lion King.[1]
 * The end of the episode shares similarities to the ending of the Lion King 2: Simba's Pride, in which the camera zooms away from Pride Rock with four characters on the peak.[2]