Disney's live-action 'The Lion King' goes for that stunning naturalism

If you thought The Jungle Book had some kind of magical realism going on, just wait until you see what's in store for The Lion King.

Disney teased a minute or so of its live-action treatment of The Lion King on Saturday at its D23 Expo, and though the film isn't due until 2019, it certainly looks on track.

"We know how important this is," director Jon Favreau (who helped pioneer the naturalism of The Jungle Book) said. "People want to know what our approach is, what are we doing? The team scrambled to pull something together ... we just want you to know we're working hard, we love you so much and we look forward to giving this to you."

And what we saw was a wonder: animals of every kind traveling across the Serengeti to celebrate the arrival of their new would-be boy king, a scene that will be all too familiar to fans of the 1994 animated classic.

Elephants, baboons, big cats, the works -- all were represented in the gathering celebration, and then we get a look at Simba (to be voiced by Donald Glover). And he's pretty cute; he looks like a real lion cub, sleepy and fuzzy, but with big, expressive blue eyes.

As "The Circle of Life" plays, he's held aloft by the baboon Rafiki, a moment that causes the animals gathered below to shake, sway and trumpet their excitement.

And just like the Jungle Book, it all looks very, very real.

It's not likely the public will see the footage anytime soon: The Lion King is due in theaters July 19, 2019.