Elton John Calls Lion King Remake 'A Huge Disappointment'

Disney's remake of "The Lion King may have included both covers and a new song from Elton John, but the singer said he's not a fan of the film's music.

While speaking with British GQ to promote his new memoir "Me," the music icon expressed how the live-action adaptation was "a huge disappointment" to him.

"I believe they messed the music up," John said. "Music was so much a part of the original and the music in the current film didn't have the same impact. The magic and joy were lost."

John famously composed the songs "Circle of Life," "I Just Can't Wait to Be King," "Be Prepared," "Hakuna Matata" and "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" for the original 1994 animated film. Though John recorded a new song for the live-action film, "Never Too Late", the Oscar winner said he hoped to have had more involvement.

"I wish I'd been invited to the party more, but the creative vision for the film and its music was different this time around and I wasn't really welcomed or treated with the same level of respect," John said. "That makes me extremely sad."

The live-action soundtrack featured beautiful renditions of John's award-winning songs and were performed by A-listers including Beyoncé, Donald Glover, Billy Eichner and Seth Rogen and included some new songs. However, as John pointed out, the soundtrack wasn't nearly as successful as the original.

"The soundtrack hasn't had nearly the same impact in the charts that it had 25 years ago, when it was the bestselling album of the year,” he said. "The new soundtrack fell out of the charts so quickly, despite the massive box-office success."

"I'm so happy that the right spirit for the music lives on with the 'Lion King' stage musical," he added.

John wasn't exaggerating when he praised the "impact" of the original animated film's soundtrack. The album won four Grammys, two Golden Globes and two Academy Awards -- for Best Original Song and Best Original Score. The soundtrack also maintained a spot on the Billboard 200 charts for 10 weeks.

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