Jon Favreau

Everyone knows that The Jungle Book, based on the classic Rudyard Kipling stories, is about a little boy living alone in the jungle with a bunch of animals. But did you know that Jon Favreau, director of this year’s live-action version of The Jungle Book, wanted his film to reflect man’s changing attitude toward nature? In Kipling’s time, Favreau said in an interview, “nature was something to be overcome. Now, nature is something to be protected.” That’s just one of the facts featured in the last episode of You Think You Know Movies!

Jon Favreau has had enough box-office success of late to keep to the movie screens, but Seth MacFarlane’s trip to space has the Jungle Book helmer squarely thinking TV. Favreau will direct and consult on MacFarlane’s new live-action FOX dramedy, set 300 years in the future.

Although it’s grouped in with Disney’s recent slate of live-action remakes, The Jungle Book is made up almost entirely of CGI, with young Neel Sethi’s Mowgli serving as the only substantial “live-action” element. The studio has released a new series of photos that showcase the insane amount of work that went into the film’s impressive visual effects, and it might make you do a double-take.

Jon Favreau is reportedly returning to direct a sequel to The Jungle Book, the live-action / CGI reimagining of Disney’s classic animated film, which took the top spot at the box office over the weekend. But that’s not the only project that has Favreau sticking around — the director has revealed that he’ll be returning to Marvel to serve as an executive producer on Avengers: Infinity War.

Kids grow up so fast these days. They have to if they’re going to watch the movies Hollywood makes for them.

Disney must feel pretty confident about The Jungle Book — Jon Favreau’s live-action / CGI retelling hits theaters on April 15, but early word-of-mouth is largely positive. And given Disney’s recent proven track record with live-action remakes of their popular classics, it sure does seem like The Jungle Book is on track to perform well at the box office. Just how well remains to be seen, but the studio is already developing a sequel with Favreau in talks to return.

In one of The Jungle Book’s more inspired bits of casting, Scarlett Johansson voices the python Kaa, a character typically portrayed as male. Johansson's distinctive voice is perfect for the hypnotic snake, who lulls Mowgli into a precarious sense of ease as she recounts his origin story in this new IMAX trailer for Jon Favreau's re-telling of the classic tale.

Disney has released two new clips from The Jungle Book — one that will make you laugh as you reach for a snack, and another that will make you feel…some things. Let’s just get the emotional part of this out of the way up front so we can end on a more positive note, okay? Unless you feel particularly emotional about food, and in that case, feel free to reverse your viewing order.

The CGI in Jon Favreau’s adaptation of The Jungle Book looks incredible — though it is a little strange to see the animals actually speak, as you can in the first clip from Disney’s epic new adventure. The sneak peek introduces us to the fearsome and ferocious tiger Shere Khan, voiced by Idris Elba, and while it’ll take some adjusting to hear these famous voices coming out of the mouths of gorgeous animals, Elba is inarguably the perfect voice for Khan.

Disney’s live-action update of The Jungle Book looks absolutely gorgeous, and if nothing else, the trailers for Jon Favreau’s new adaptation of the beloved classic promises some incredible CGI — perhaps even better than Ang Lee’s Life of Pi. We’ll have to wait until next month to be certain, but until then, Disney has released some pretty cool new photos featuring the voice cast posing alongside their respective CG animal characters.