DisneySome of our favorite celebrities are starring in Disney's new film The Jungle Book. Before the movie swings into theaters Apr. 15, Disney has released brand new images that pair the actors with their onscreen characters.
The Jungle Book is an action-packed film directed by Jon Favreau. The story follows Mowgli (Neel Sethi), a man cub raised by wolves who is forced to leave the jungle after Shere Khan (Idris Elba) threatens to kill him. "Shere Khan reigns with fear," Elba says of the tiger. "He terrorizes everyone he encounters because he comes from a place of fear." After leaving home, Mowgli embarks on a journey to find himself.
The movie also features the voice talents of Scarlett Johansson, Lupita Nyong'o, Ben Kingsley, Christopher Walken and Giancarlo Esposito. Johansson voices Kaa, a python with a hypnotizing voice and glare. "Kaa seduces and entraps Mowgli with her storytelling," she says. "She's the mirror into Mowgli's past. The way she moves is very alluring, almost coquettish."
Nyong'o, who currently stars on Broadway in Eclipsed, voices Raksha, a mother wolf. "She is the protector, the eternal mother," she says. "The word Raksha actually means protection in Hindi. I felt really connected to that, wanting to protect a son that isn't originally hers but one she's taken for her own." Kingsley, meanwhile, voices Mowgli's panther protector. "Bagheera is Mowgli's adoptive parent," he says. "His role in Mowgli's life is to educate, to protect and to guide. My Bagheera was military–he's probably a colonel. He is instantly recognizable by the way he talks, how he acts and what his ethical code is."
See more cast portraits—and learn about Esposito and Walken's roles—in the gallery below.