The Lion King is a classic animated Disney film, beloved by generations, but it harbors a secret alternate ending that was too horrific to end up in the final cut. The Lion King is one of the most successful Disney animated films ever, and has produced sequels, a Broadway show, and an ambitious live-action remake with a star-studded cast. Its story comes from an unlikely source, Shakespeare's Hamlet, which makes it uniquely mature for adults, whilst still being engaging for children.
Due to its source material, The Lion King does deal with some especially mature themes, such as death and grief. The majority of the film showcases Simba mourning his father Mufasa. He purposefully avoids returning home as he can't face his trauma, blaming himself for Mufasa's horrific death due to the manipulation of his uncle, Scar. Mufasa's death, despite the film being released in the 1990s, is still one of the most emotionally traumatizing scenes in a Disney film, but The Lion King's alternate ending could have gone a lot further.
In the alternate version, the climactic scene at the end of The Lion King where Simba defeats Scar is different, and more horrifying. The battle largely remains the same, except for Scar's death. In their tussle, flames surround Pride Rock and spread quickly, setting a fiery background to the ultimate battle. Scar throws Simba from Pride Rock and believes him to be dead, not knowing that Simba is hanging on to a branch on the cliff. Regardless, the aptly named Scar then believes himself not only to be victorious, but revels in the fact that he is now the King of Pride Rock. However, the flames quickly spread to where he stands, and he becomes engulfed in them. The alternate ending shows Scar burning alive, laughing as he's taken to a fiery end.
This alternate ending leaves little to the imagination regarding Scar's death. In the final version of The Lion King Scar's death is ambiguous; he's shown falling into a pit of his disgruntled Hyena henchman, and the camera then pans away, not showing his fate definitively. The alternate scene, however, shows Scar's death in all its brutality. The particular addition of his crazed laughing also adds to the disturbing aspect of his character and the scene in general. The first The Lion King movie made Scar's ruthless ambition clear, and it was known how far he would go to become King, but his last moments in the alternate ending show just how mad he became. His laughing as he dies shows that he was twisted beyond repair, and he was only focused on one thing. Once he got what he wanted, nothing else mattered to him, not even his own death.
It is traditional, in Disney movies in particular, that the villains get their comeuppance. Gothel falls from the tower window, Eric kills Ursula, and Jafar gets trapped in a lamp, to name a few. Scar's treacherous, scheming ways are particularly evil, even for a Disney villain. Yet, with that being said, Scar's death in The Lion King's alternate ending was just a step too far for Disney.