We have a long history of animated characters we’ve suspected as being stoners. Naturally, we have a classic list of the all-time greatest movie potheads – a collection that includes Harold and Kumar, Jay and Silent Bob, and The Dude. But what about the cartoon characters whose actions raise suspicions. Yes, I’m looking at you, Shaggy from Scooby-Doo. And absolutely, I’m talking about Otto the school bus driver from The Simpsons. After all, his name is Otto, and he loves getting blotto. But what about Pumbaa, the adorable warthog made famous in The Lion King? It’s worth us having a discussion.
What do we know about Pumbaa, anyway? Well, he has a flatulence problem. He loves singing a song that encourages us to relax, and have “no worries for the rest of your days.” These are personality traits we associate with a weed merchant. So we brought the idea directly to Seth Rogen, who voices Pumbaa in The Lion King and the new movie Mufasa, currently burning up the box office. And as we all know, Rogen knows his way around a pot circle. When we asked Rogen if he suspected Pumbaa to be a fellow stoner, the comedian frankly admitted:
I don’t know. Not according to official Disney canon, I wouldn’t imagine. But I’d say there’s that influence on the character a little. He seems pretty out of it. In general, pretty confused and delighted by the things that life offers. Which I share! (laughs)
To me, this sounds like one of those examples of a character taking on the personality traits of the famous celebrity hired to play them. In a similar fashion, we have come to associate nobility – and a little bit of controlled chaos – with Woody from Toy Story because he has sounded like Tom Hanks for the past few decades. And also, there’s now zero separation between the late Robin Williams and the Genie from Aladdin, because the animators bringing the character to life used Williams’ improvisations, and Williams injected his own over-the-top humor into the delivery.
To me, it sounds like Pumbaa in these new “live action” Lion King movies have taken on some of Seth Rogen’s postures. Does that make him a stoner? Not in Disney canon. Just like how Sleepy from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs probably doesn’t imbibe… though he certainly looks like he takes a few hits from the bong while working in the diamond mine. Now, does that make Pumbaa a stoner in Rogen’s personal canon? Yeah, it sounds like the comedian can see it, and get behind it. I think it gives Pumbaa an extra ingredient that the parents can appreciate as they sit through Mufasa with their kids. Every little bit helps.
Mufasa currently is bringing audiences into theaters, but we also have a full slate of upcoming Disney movies reaching multiplexes in 2025 ,so use our guide as a handbook to help you plan out your screenings in the forthcoming year.
