Walt Disney Pictures’ upcoming take on The Jungle Book has found its first star. Deadline reports that Pacific Rim and Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom star Idris Elba will lend his voice to villainous tiger Shere Khan in the Jon Favreau film.
The original Rudyard Kipling book was published in 1894 and includes, among a number of other animal-themed stories, the classic tales of an Indian boy named Mowgli who is raised by wolves and lives among the other animals in the jungle.
Disney previously released an animated version of the film in 1967 and another live-action film in 1994. The latest take features a screenplay by Justin Marks.
With Kipling’s book well into the public domain, Warner Bros. has been developing their own live action version of the book with Harry Potter scribe Steve Kloves providing the screenplay and Ron Howard directing.
The Jungle Book is set for release on October 9, 2015.
(Photo Credit: Iveta Rysava / WENN.com)
