Disney has had a pretty great year of cinema, and a lot of that is due to the massive success of The Jungle Book. A live-action adaptation of the classic cartoon of the same name, The Jungle Book featured groundbreaking visual effects and a voice cast consisting of A-list Hollywood talent. It's been reported that a sequel is in the works with Jon Favreau returning to direct but there has been no official announcement from Disney. Well, one actor hopes they announce it soon because he's more than willing to come back for a sequel. That actor is the breakout star of that film Neel Sethi (Mowgli), the only one in the cast who actually had to be there for filming.
While speaking with ScreenRant, Neel Sethi weighed in on the hypothetical sequel and it sounds like the first time actor had a great time making the first one. He's definitely willing to come back for a sequel to continue the adventures of Mowgli the man cub.
Well, I really want to do it and I hope I can, but no idea what they're doing or how they're going to do it. But I want to do it, yeah!
It's good to know that Sethi is so eager to come back for a sequel. There was a lot of pressure on him as the sole human character in the entire film and this was his first time acting in a movie. However, his involvement in the sequel really depends on what direction the filmmakers want to take it. Unlike other Jungle Book movies, this one ended with Mowgli staying in the jungle - clearly setting up the opportunity for more adventures. It's possible the sequel will have a time jump and recast for an older Mowgli. On the other hand, production could just wait a few years for the 13-year-old Sethi to shoot up like a tree when his teen years go into full effect.
One reason that Disney might not have announced a sequel yet is so that they can nail down a basic story. They've basically already told the plot of the original animated picture, so the sequel would be entering uncharted waters. There's apparently some untouched material from author Rudyard Kipling's original novel, so a sequel could choose to adapt more of the source material.
Disney also made a direct to video sequel to the animated Jungle Book that featured a civilized Mowgli returning to the jungle for another adventure and butting heads with a returned Shere Kan. A live action sequel could cherry pick some material from that movie. Of course, there's always the rich thought provoking material of Tale Spin, a Disney cartoon that starred Jungle Book characters as anthropomorphic animals in a 1940's-like city, in which Baloo was a bush pilot and Shere Khan was an evil businessman.
There's sure to be some news about a Jungle Book sequel eventually - and we've still got Andy Sekis' version to look out for - so keep it here at CinemaBlend and we'll keep you updated.
