Mufasa: The Lion King introduced the white lions, and these villains could mean a significant change for a potential The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride remake. Though the 2025 movie took the Lion King franchise in a different direction, there are hints throughout Mufasa that the animated movies of the 1990s are still on Disney’s mind. Mufasa and Scar’s story was completely unique, but Simba’s daughter, Kiara, was a character in 1998’s The Lion King animated sequel. What’s more, the villain Kiros seems to be connected to Simba’s Pride as well.

Kiros was a white lion in Mufasa: The Lion King and the leader of a pride made up of lions who looked like him. It’s ultimately revealed that these white lions had each belonged to different prides across the African continent but had been rejected by their families for their differences. It was for this reason that Kiros became determined to wipe out all the lion kings, and he set his sights on Taka and Mufasa. Though Kiros was ultiamtely dealt with in Mufasa: The Lion King, his “Outsider” pride lived on, banished from the newly established Pride Lands.

The Lion King 2’s Villains & Mufasa’s White Lions Are Both Known As Outsiders

Mufasa May Have Retconned The 1998 Villains

Kiros’ white lion pride being called the Outsiders in Mufasa: The Lion King is intriguing since this is what the villains of 1998’s The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride were called. Of course, the backstories of these characters are entirely different. In the animated movie, the Outsiders were lions who had been loyal to Scar when he usurped Mufasa in The Lion King. After Simba became king, he banished the Outsiders to live in the shadows surrounding the Pride Lands. There, they lived in misery, waiting for their moment to strike back at Simba.

Though different, the Outsiders of Mufasa: The Lion King and those of The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride share similarities. The white lions were also banished from the pride lands and treated as rejects even before that. The white lion Outsiders would have just as much reason to hate Mufasa’s line, so it may be that Disney intends its next Lion King movie to make these villains one and the same.

The Lion King 2 Could Include White Lions As Villains To Build On Mufasa

There’s Room For This Story To Grow

Mufasa: The Lion King established several features of The Lion King II: Simba‘s Pride, essentially leaving the door open for a CGI remake of this animated sequel. While it’s certainly possible that such a movie would feature the Outsiders that had been loyal to Scar, it would be a bit strange to have two unrelated villain groups with the same name in the Lion King franchise. Instead, Disney likely intends to replace the tawny Outsiders of Simba’s Pride with Kiros’ white lion kin in the next Lion King movie.

This would be an intriguing change. The original Lion King sequel’s claim that lions had been loyal to Scar didn’t make much sense since we saw no evidence of this in The Lion King. Of course, it was an easy enough thing to accept for a direct-to-video Disney sequel, but a major CGI remake of The Lion King II would need a far more solid continuity. The idea of Kiara falling in love with an Outsider descendant of the white lion Kiros makes a bit more sense. Mufasa: The Lion King perfectly set the stage for such a story, but we must wait and see if it actually happens.