The Lion Guard Announced

Disney Junior announces that it is planning an animated series titled The Lion Guard, which will first launch as a made-for-TV movie. The title refers to a team led by Kion, who is charged with preserving the Pride Lands. To help him on that mission, he recruits an eclectic group of animals. As Disney Junior general manager Nancy Kanter puts it, it’s “The Lion King meets The Avengers.”

That crew includes “a fearless honey badger, a confident cheetah, a happy-go-lucky hippo and an intellectual egret.” Other characters expected to appear include Kion’s older sister Kiara, the future Queen of the Pride Lands, as well as the original Lion King‘s Timon, Pumbaa, Rafiki, Zazu, and Mufasa.