Zazu (2019 film)

Zazu is a male hornbill. He currently serves as the majordomo of the Pride Lands.
Initially, Zazu served as Mufasa's majordomo. However, when Mufasa died in a wildebeest stampede, Scar assumed the throne, and Zazu was driven from the pride. Despite his banishment, Zazu continued to report on the state of the Pride Lands to Mufasa's widow, Sarabi, and helped Nala escape the Pride Lands to find help. Eventually, Nala returned to the Pride Lands with Mufasa's son, Simba, who challenged Scar's claim to the throne. Zazu supported Simba's efforts and helped him defeat Scar's hyena army, after which Simba took the throne, and Zazu became his majordomo.
==Biography==
===Early life===
Zazu lived in the Pride Lands. He had a brother and a cousin. Zazu met Mufasa, the prince heir of the Pride Lands, when he was a cub and often witnessed his mischievous antics. At some point in his life, Zazu became Mufasa's majordomo.
===Simba's presentation===
Zazu attended the presentation of Mufasa's newborn son, Simba. As the Pride Landers gathered at Pride Rock, Zazu flew over the crowd, landed on Pride Rock's promontory, and bowed to Mufasa.
After the ceremony, Scar taunted a field mouse. Zazu approached and warned Scar that Mufasa was coming, as he was displeased with Scar for having missed Simba's presentation. Annoyed at the hornbill for distracting him and letting his prey escape, Scar attempted to eat Zazu, only for Mufasa to show up and stop him. Once Zazu was free, Mufasa asked Scar why he had not attended Simba's presentation, and Zazu reminded Scar that, as the king's brother, he should have been "first in line." Scar countered that he had been first in line until Simba's birth. In the face of Mufasa's hostility, Scar claimed that he would not dare to challenge Mufasa again, and Zazu agreed that it was a wise decision, as Scar was no match for Mufasa.
Eventually, Scar wandered off, and Zazu questioned why Mufasa refused to expel him. Mufasa replied that Scar was his brother and that the Pride Lands was his home. Zazu asserted that every family had an odd member, then told the story of his cousin, who thought he was a woodpecker. Together, Mufasa and Zazu left the cave.
===Morning report to Mufasa===
As seasons passed, Simba grew into a young cub. One day, while Mufasa was teaching Simba about the Circle of Life, Zazu appeared and delivered his morning report to Mufasa. During Zazu's report, Mufasa instructed Simba in a pouncing lesson, and Simba used Zazu as his target. Annoyed, Zazu declared that he had been trying to deliver the news, then flew off in a huff.
Before long, Zazu returned with news that hyenas were invading the Pride Lands. Mufasa asked where Sarabi was, and Zazu told him that she was leading the charge against the hyenas. Mufasa ordered Zazu to take Simba home, and Zazu obediently guided Simba back to Pride Rock. Once there, Zazu urged Simba to play with the other cubs, then flew away.
===Rescuing Simba and Nala===
Simba asked Sarabi if he and his best friend, Nala, could go to the water hole. She agreed but sent Zazu with them. While escorting the cubs, Zazu patrolled the surrounding area vigilantly. Meanwhile, Simba and Nala plotted to get away from Zazu so they could visit the Elephant Graveyard.
In the midst of the cubs' planning, Zazu flew down and marveled at their friendship. Confused, Simba and Nala asked Zazu what he was talking about, and he informed them that they would be some day get married to each other. Disgusted, Simba declared that he would not have to marry anyone, as he would be the king, but Zazu insisted that it was a tradition. Simba countered that he would never let anyone tell him what to do, to which Zazu asserted that Simba could not escape his destiny. As Simba and Zazu argued back and forth, the cubs raced away, and Zazu frantically chased after them. Despite his best efforts to keep up with them, he eventually got swept away by a flock of birds and separated from the cubs.
Eventually, Zazu caught up with Simba and Nala at the Elephant Graveyard and defended them from Shenzi and her clan. He warned Shenzi that, should she harm Simba, she would be starting a war with Mufasa, but Shenzi argued that hyenas and lions had always been at war and that she wanted to end Mufasa's bloodline right then and there. Shenzi proceeded to lunge at Simba and Nala, but Zazu jumped in front of her, which gave the cubs time to escape. Just in time, Mufasa showed up and fended off the hyenas. Afterward, Zazu, Mufasa, Simba, and Nala returned to the Pride Lands, and Mufasa instructed Zazu to take Nala home. Before leaving, Zazu encouraged Mufasa to go easy on Simba and reminded him that he had once been a rambunctious cub himself. Zazu and Nala then left together.
===Mufasa's death===
The next day, Zazu was with Mufasa when Scar informed them that Simba was trapped in a wildebeest stampede. The three raced toward the gorge, and Zazu vowed to find Simba. Eventually, Zazu found Simba clinging to a tree branch. After Zazu informed Mufasa of Simba's location, Scar sent Zazu to fetch the pride while he helped Mufasa save Simba. However, while Zazu was away, Scar threw Mufasa to his death and drove Simba from the Pride Lands.
After Mufasa's death, Scar became the king of Pride Rock. From afar, Zazu and Rafiki watched the coronation in disapproval.
===Scar's reign===
Under Scar's tyrannical reign, the hyenas overhunted the Pride Lands and depleted the kingdom of its plentiful resources. Meanwhile, Zazu got banished from the kingdom under the threat of being eaten should he ever return. However, he continued to deliver daily morning reports to Mufasa's widow, Sarabi.
One day, Zazu delivered the morning report to Sarabi, where he informed her that the hyenas had chased off the last of the herds. Just then, Azizi and Kamari approached and chased Zazu off.
That night, Nala attempted to sneak out of the Pride Lands. Zazu intercepted her and tried to convince her to stay, but she argued that she did not need protecting anymore. Just then, Scar noticed something amiss and began to search the surrounding area with his hyena minions. He nearly caught Nala until Zazu distracted him and lured him and the hyenas away from her. This enabled her to successfully escape the Pride Lands.
===Battle for Pride Rock===
One day, a full-grown Simba returned to the Pride Lands with Nala, Timon, and Pumbaa. Zazu spotted Simba and, elated to see him again, welcomed him home. Simba then introduced Zazu to Timon and Pumbaa, who mistook him for a puffin. As the group readied to approach Pride Rock, Zazu declared that they were with Simba until the end. Timon and Pumbaa proceeded to distract the hyenas, while Zazu, Simba, and Nala made a beeline for Pride Rock.
Upon reaching Pride Rock, Simba challenged Scar for the throne and rallied the lionesses against him. In the ensuing battle, Zazu attacked some of the hyenas before being cornered, but Rafiki saved him.
===Simba's coronation===
After Scar's defeat, Simba reconvened with his pride. Before he ascended Pride Rock to become king, Zazu bowed to him and called him "Your Majesty." Later, Zazu attended the presentation of Simba and Nala's newborn cub.
==Physical appearance==
Zazu is a small and delicately built hornbill. He has feathers with blue, gray, and white hues, with white spots on his wings and a ridge of black on the top of his head. He also has a long, curved, orange beak, black talons, and beady yellow eyes.
==Personality and traits==
Zazu has a strong sense of duty and reveres tradition. He is exceptionally loyal to Mufasa, to the point that he continued to deliver morning reports to Mufasa's widow, Sarabi, even under the threat of death. At times, Zazu can be snobby and vain, as he takes great pride in his majordomo title and does not tolerate being talked down to. Despite his more serious nature, he does occasionally enjoy a good jest and likes to tell funny stories about his family.
Zazu is especially protective of Simba and Nala, even into their adulthood. He continued to shield an adult Nala from Scar and the hyenas, and vowed his loyalty to Simba upon the young lion's return to the Pride Lands. Brave and determined, Zazu will defend the Pride Lands with his life and is unwaveringly loyal to those whom he trusts and respects.
==Appearances==
==Trivia==
* Zazu was voiced by the following:
** In The Lion King, he was voiced by John Oliver.
** In Mufasa: The Lion King, he will be voiced by Preston Nyman.
==References==
Category:Characters
Category:Hornbills
Category:The Lion King (2019 film) characters
Category:Majordomos
Category:Males
Category:Mufasa: The Lion King characters
Category:Pride Landers