- “Not anymore. While you ruled this pride, I've built my army. Yours is the last pride in the Valley of Kings, which means everything the light touches belongs to me. There will be one ruler. One... Lion... King.”
- ―Kiros to Eshe and Obasi[src]
Kiros is the main antagonist in Disney's 2024 prequel feature film Mufasa: The Lion King. He is the formidable leader of the Outsiders, a pride of white lions.
Background[]
Personality[]
Kiros is a formidable and ruthless leader, even willing to sacrifice his own followers for failing him. He is quite sadistic and enjoyed frightening his victims before killing them. Devoted and passionate, he was bent on revenge for Mufasa's murder of his son and was willing to cross miles of territory to track Mufasa down. Ultimately, Kiros' limited sensory abilities were his downfall, as Mufasa was able to hurl him beneath a falling boulder and kill him.
Physical appearance[]
Kiros is a massive and well-built white lion. He possesses white fur, a shaggy white mane, white elbow tufts, and prominent fangs. His eyes are blue.
Role in the film[]
Kiros kills off Obasi's pride.
As part of Kiros' quest to conquer the Valley of Kings, Azibo and Shaju attacked Eshe, only for Mufasa to leap to her defense and kill Shaju. Azibo reported what had happened to Kiros, who questioned why he had made it out alive but not Shaju. At their king's request, Akua and Amara examined Azibo and accused him of having abandoned Shaju to die. As recompense for his son's death, Kiros let his followers kill Azibo.
Afterwards, the Outsiders confronted Obasi and his pride. Though Obasi argued that Kiros had no reason to challenge him, Kiros countered that Obasi's was the only pride left in the Valley of Kings and that he planned to rule everything the light touched. Obasi protested that lions did not hunt other lions, but Kiros retorted that they did indeed, as his pride advanced on their prey.
Kiros confronts Mufasa and Taka.
Upon realizing that Mufasa and his current brother, Taka, had escaped, Kiros led his pride in pursuit. Eventually, the Outsiders caught up to the brothers, and Kiros demanded to know which of them had killed Shaju. Mufasa immediately took the blame and lied that Taka was simply a stray, but Akua and Amara determined that he carried the blood of Obasi's pride. Desiring revenge, Kiros ordered his pride to attack, and they cornered Mufasa and Taka at the edge of a waterfall. Thinking quickly, Taka knocked them both off the waterfall and into the river below. Though Kiros ordered one of his lionesses after them, she got devoured by a crocodile.
The Outsiders continued their hunt, eventually catching up to Mufasa, Taka, and their allies at a ravine. As the Outsiders attempted to cross a rock bridge to reach them, Sarabi incited an elephant stampede that knocked the rock bridges down, thus cutting off the Outsiders' pursuit. As Kiros and his pride retreated, Zazu flew after them, taunting them.
Kiros decides to take over Milele.
Eventually, Mufasa and his allies began to scale a snowy mountain, and Mufasa instructed Zazu to cover their tracks to confound the Outsiders. The plan worked, with Akua and Amara unable to track them any farther. At that moment, Taka approached Kiros and allied with him, claiming that Mufasa had gotten his father, Obasi, killed, just as he had killed Shaju. He then agreed to lead the Outsiders to Mufasa's destination: Milele. Kiros accepted Taka's proposal and made him pledge his loyalty.
Keeping his word, Taka left a trail of claw marks that the Outsiders followed to Milele. Once there, Kiros confronted Mufasa and revealed that Taka had betrayed him. He then declared that Milele belonged to him, to which Mufasa retorted that he would have to take it.
Kiros' death.
As a battle broke out, Mufasa rallied the animals of Milele to his cause, and they leaped into battle against the Outsiders. Meanwhile, Kiros knocked Mufasa into a cave, and they began to fight one-on-one. Over the course of their fight, Kiros assumed the upper hand and readied to fatally strike Mufasa. Before his blow could land, Taka leaped in-between them, taking the brunt of the attack across his face. He then begged Kiros not to kill Mufasa.
At that moment, an earthquake caused Kiros and Mufasa to fall into an underground pool. They continued to fight, until Mufasa sensed a large boulder falling into the water and hurled Kiros underneath it, killing him.
Trivia[]
- Kiros' name is of African origin and carries the meaning of "lord".
- Kiros' animators worked Mads Mikkelsen's features into Kiros' face, including two "vampire fang" teeth.[1]
- In the Danish dub of The Lion King (2019), Mads' older brother, Lars Mikkelsen, dubbed Scar.
- Originally, Kiros was supposed to end up tangled in seaweed after being underwater and then drowning from lack of air.
- Kiros is partially inspired by the character Strange Lion from The Lion Guard, a television series set in the same universe as the original film. Both lions are responsible for Askari and Taka's transformation into Scar and the scar on their left eye, but while the Strange Lion inflicted the scar through a cobra bite, Kiros did it himself.
- The way Kiros leaves the scar on Taka's face indirectly recalls the scene in The Lion King II: Simba's Pride where Zira scratches Kovu for turning against the Outsiders.
- Kiros saying at Taka/Scar "I didn't kill him.... you did" after he claws him in the face when he steps in to save Mufasa foreshadows the events of The Lion King (2019) with Scar killing Mufasa by making him fall to his death in the gorge. This makes Kiros indirectly responsible for Mufasa's death due to his role in corrupting Scar.
Gallery[]
Screenshots[]
.png "Mufasa the Lion King teaser (28).png (618 KB)")
Miscellaneous[]
References[]
- ↑ Nick Romano (November 12, 2024). "Meet Kiros, Mads Mikkelsen's villainous pack leader of Disney's Mufasa prequel (exclusive)". Dotdash Meredith. Retrieved on November 12, 2024.
