The House of Mouse has lifted the curtain on the very first teaser for Jon Favreau’s live-action reboot of The Jungle Book – and it’s a doozy. Showcasing nine kinds of computer wizardy, the clip is a visual delight, particularly when you factor in that Neel Sethi’s nimble Mowgli is the only physical cog in a complex, computed animated machine.
Yes, Rudyard Kipling’s beloved yarn is heading back to the big-screen in a major way, boasting an ensemble cast that has much more than just the bear necessities. Not only has Favreau enlisted Bill Murray to voice Baloo, but Iron Man and Chef alum Scarlet Johansson reunites with the director to play Kaa. There’s also room in the animal kingdom for Ben Kingsley’s Bagheera, Christopher Walken’s Louie and Idris Elba as Shere Khan.
Using the visual effects of Avatar and Ang Lee’s wondrous Life of Pi as reference points, it’s understood that Disney is making strides to bring The Jungle Book to life like never before, all the while avoiding the pitfalls the befell other CG-heavy films in the field such as Beowulf. Empire unveiled the first official image for Favreau’s rendition of the beloved adventure, all the while unearthing the director’s stylistic approach to Kipling’s coming-of-age tale.
“We wanted to make sure that film fit more in our times,” explains Favreau of his more Kipling-ified update. “But I wanted to make sure that whatever images were looming in my memory, I captured them so it evokes the original.”
Forget about your worries and your strife: Jon Favreau’s The Jungle Book will dance its way into theaters on April 15, 2016.
Mowgli—a man-cub raised in the jungle by a family of wolves—embarks on a captivating journey of self-discovery when he’s forced to abandon the only home he’s ever known. See an all-new live-action retelling of The Jungle Book, coming to theaters on April 15, 2016.