It appears that Hugh Jackman has joined the cast of The Lion King as Scar. Jackman has just recently retired his Adamantium Wolverine claws for good, after his swan song Logan hit theaters earlier this year. With his career defining role now behind him, he is looking to beef up his schedule - that currently includes The Greatest Showman hitting theaters later this year. While his open schedule likely won't see him join the MCU, it has allowed him to rejoin the Disney family in another way.

Jon Favreau's live-action remake of Lion King continues to move forward by assembling its cast ahead of a 2019 release. Most recently, John Oliver joined as Zazu, the advisor for the king. Thanks to the story of Lion King, this means he winds up spending a good deal of time with the big bad, Scar, and Jackman is now set to take on the role.

Omega Underground has revealed that Jackman has joined the cast as Scar. This does ultimately mean that Jeremy Irons will not return in the role that he made famous in the original animated feature, but Jackman is a worthy successor. This casting also reveals why Jackman posted this cryptic tweet yesterday. With Disney's live-action panel at D23 set to begin any moment, this could be confirmed very quickly.

PARTNERS. @Disneyland pic.twitter.com/dEuFwxfoqd— Hugh Jackman (@RealHughJackman) July 15, 2017

UPDATE: Following the D23 live-action movie panel, The Wrap reached out to Jackman's representative, who claimed there is "absolutely no truth" to the report that the actor is voicing Scar. The rest of this article has been left as it was originally published.

Jackman certainly has the ferocity to play Scar, and will bring his many talents to the character. Thanks to his love of music and history with it, he should be a natural fit to take on Scar's musical parts, including his memorable 'Be Prepared' tune. This also reunites him with Disney after previously working together on Real Steel, but this will be a much bigger project. With a completely CGI world in store for the film, we will have to wait and see if Jackman does Scar's mo-cap as well, or simply provides the voice.

The addition of Jackman continues to stack the cast for Favreau. Donald Glover is set to lead the film as Simba, with James Earl Jones reprising his role as Mufasa. Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen have also joined previously as the lovable duo Timon and Pumbaa, while reports of Beyonce being eyed for Nala have also circulated. With some other smaller parts still needed to be cast, it is clear that Favreau is attracting some of Hollywood's top talent - just like he did with The Jungle Book. With the original Lion King being a much more beloved animated film, expectations will only continue to rise for this remake. Thankfully the talent involved should give them a great chance of replicating the results.

MORE: Lion King Remake Gets Summer 2019 Release Date

Source: Omega Underground

Update Source: The Wrap

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