Lions are majestic-looking creatures, but that is not the only reason Mufasa’s line ruled over the Pride Lands in The Lion King. While the original movies might have simply assumed that lions should be in charge, a more recent Disney project has elaborated on that premise by giving the kings a mystical superpower that ensures their right and ability to justly rule over the other animals — the Roar of the Elders.
For generations, the lions governed as a family. The king and queen ruled. The firstborn acted as the heir to prepare for the future, while the secondborn was given the role of protector. As such, the Great Lions of the Past bestowed the Roar of the Elders to the secondborn, so that he could ensure the safety of all the animals in the kingdom with their special powers.
The Roar of the Elders never appeared in the original Lion King movies because Mufasa only had one child. Therefore, Simba could not be both the prince and the leader of the Lion Guard. However, Scar, Mufasa’s younger brother, once held the power before using it for evil. It was taken from him after he tried to overtake the throne and murder his followers for their refusal to help him usurp Mufasa.
After Simba became king and had two children of his own, the Roar of the Elders was once again given to a young lion. While his firstborn, Kiara, was to be queen, Kion was given the historical role of protector. Kion’s story was is told in the 2015 animated movie The Lion Guard: Return of the Roar and further described in the subsequent series, The Lion Guard.
The Roar of the Elders’ powers are pretty impressive and reminiscent of a couple of superheroes. For starters, its wielder is the leader of the Lion Guard, a team of hand-picked lions who serve with their leader to watch over the Pride Lands. When chosen, a lion head appears on their shoulder called the Mark of the Guard.
The Roar of the Elders also grants the ability to commune with and draw power from the Great Lions of the Past, similar to The Rise of Skywalker. It’s also a great way to find a council for the king because its users can summon spirits to draw wisdom from. Then, with a power reminiscent of the Marvel Universe’s Black Bolt, the Lion Guard leader can use a Sonic Roar that flattens plains, breaks rocks and even kills if focused on a specific target. Finally, like Storm from the X-Men, the leader can control the weather, creating floods, twisters and even summon lightning. Clearly, the power is impressive and gives the Pride Rock lions a great deal of help ruling over the other animals.
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