The full cast of the 2019 Lion King remake already felt rich having chart-topping singer Beyoncé Knowles cast as the voice of Nala. In the Disney prequel Mufasa: The Lion King, another addition to the Carter family joined the cast, with the Grammy winner’s daughter Blue Ivy cast as Simba and Nala’s daughter Kiara. As the nepo baby debate continues to surge when news surfaces of kids working with their famous parents, director Barry Jenkins confirms that “her parents were not involved.”
Blue Ivy Carter has been featured in her mother’s music videos starting from when she was only a year old in “Blue.” Now at the age of 12 years old, Carter will be making her film debut playing the voice of Kiara in the new Disney movie Mufasa. While it’s easy to assume that Blue Ivy was cast because her famous mother, who is reprising Nala, Barry Jenkins told People at the Mufasa L.A. premiere that is not the case:
Her parents weren't involved in her booking this film. You know, she had read this book, this audiobook Hair Love with my friend Matthew Cherry. And I just really loved her voice. Because [when] this movie begins, it's all voices. I could just tell that she was going to bring this really wonderful innocence, but also the knowingness of a highly evolved child.
We can’t deny that from the moment that cute Blue Ivy was born she was deemed “the most famous baby in the world.” However, I’d like to believe Barry Jenkins wouldn’t have cast the youngest BET Award winner if he didn’t think she’d do a good job. As the Moonlight director said, he was sold with Carter’s narration of the children’s audiobook Hair Love, which won her Best Voiceover at the Voice Arts Awards. Jenkins also made sure to mention that her addition to the Disney prequel would help a young audience see themselves in Kiara.
The young singer/actress wouldn’t be the only celebrity to get cornered into the nepo baby debate. Actresses like M3GAN’s Allison Williams, daughter of news anchor Brian Williams, talked about how unfair it was to be compared to an actress with zero connections. It's a shame that stars with famous parents have to defend the hard work and talent they put into each performance.
Cindy Crawford’s daughter, Kaia Gerber, also joined in on the debate with her honest take being that having a famous mother helped her gain a source of information and advice about the modeling industry close to home. However, acting is a different story because it’s about talent, kindness and being easy to work with. And like Lily Collins’ stance on her success, no one would question the child of a doctor for following the same path as they still need medical school training to get there. As Blue Ivy’s father, Jay-Z, previously said about his kids going into show business, he claimed he wouldn’t push the entertainment industry on his children, but would support whatever path they chose for themselves.
Not only is Blue Ivy Carter talented like her mother, but apparently has the same work ethic. Barry Jenkins continued to send praises to his Mufasa actress about what it was like working with:
It was great working with her. She came extremely prepared.
It’s clear that Blue Ivy Carter learned from the best. 2023 was a very big year for Beyoncé’s young daughter who joined her mother onstage for the first time to sing “Brown Skin Girl.” Carter also was featured as a dancer for her mom’s Renaissance World Tour. The way that Blue Ivy danced during Beyoncé’s 2022 Oscars performance, she'd have to be part of her mother's act, as social media users thought they were twins! Therefore, it’s proof that the child star is just naturally gifted like her parents are.
With Barry Jenkins saying that Blue Ivy Carter's famous parents "were not involved" in her getting cast in Mufasa, it shows the American filmmaker's casting choice was based on talent compared to any family connections. Considering what an incredible voice the gifted star has, it’s evident that Carter has earned her spot as Kiara. You can see why critics are feeling the love for The Lion King origin story with the 2024 movie release of Mufasa in theaters now.
