History Trivia / TheJungleBook2016

** Creator/VictorTrujillo, who is known for playing the ''Creator/{{Disney}}''[=/=]''Creator/{{Pixar}}'' GentleGiant protagonists [[WesternAnimation/MonstersInc James P. Sullivan]] and [[WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles1 Mr. Incredible]]. However, he plays the [[HeroKiller tyrannical and murderous]] Bhengal tiger Shere Khan, being his second Disney BigBad after [[WesternAnimation/ThePrincessAndTheFrog Dr. Facilier]].

** Creator/VictorTrujillo, who is known for playing the ''Creator/{{Disney}}''[=/=]''Creator/{{Pixar}}'' GentleGiant protagonists [[WesternAnimation/MonstersInc James P. Sullivan]] and [[WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles Mr. Incredible]]. However, he plays the [[HeroKiller tyrannical and murderous]] Bhengal tiger Shere Khan, being his second Disney BigBad after [[WesternAnimation/ThePrincessAndTheFrog Dr. Facilier]].

** Creator/VictorTrujillo, who is known for playing the ''Creator/{{Disney}}''[=/=]''Creator/{{Pixar}}'' GentleGiant heroes [[WesternAnimation/MonstersInc James P. Sullivan]] and [[WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles Mr. Incredible]]. However, he plays the [[HeroKiller tyrannical and murderous]] Bhengal tiger Shere Khan, being his second Disney BigBad after [[WesternAnimation/ThePrincessAndTheFrog Dr. Facilier]].

* IWantYouToMeetAnOldFriendOfMine: Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson were a great deal more antagonistic toward each other here than they were [[Film/LostInTranslation the last time they paired off.]]

* RoleReprise: Shinichi Ishihara reprises King Louie from the Japanese version of ''WesternAnimation/TheJungleBook''.

** From the looks of it, this movie may at one time have considered ''averting'' Kaa's AdaptationalVillainy for once, [[http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/disney/images/e/e9/Jungle_Book_-_Concept_Art_3.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20160413153142 as concept art exists of Bagheera and Baloo apparently coming to her for help (which they do in the book)]].

* RelationshipVoiceActor:
** A chunk of the cast (including the director) has been in the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse.
** In a similar way, Baloo's voice actor, Bill Murray, is brothers with another voice for the bear, Brian Doyle-Murray. Brian voiced Baloo in the 1998 adaptation, ''Mowgli's Story'', which was ''also'' by Disney.

* GeniusBonus: King Louie's appearance as a scaled up alpha male orangutan, complete with distinctively facial frill, is this on several levels. Firstly, DNA testing has revealed the orangutan as the closest living relative to the Gigantopithecus. Secondly, most scientists now favor the interpretation that they looked like orangutans as a result of that relationship. Finally, the frill not only asserts his position as the dominant ape in the temple (hence "King" Louie), but combines with both the generally obese look of alpha orangutan males and the indications of his lazy, gluttonous lifestyle to enforce the thematic image of a stereotypical obese yet dangerous mob boss.

* MeaningfulName: Some of the names are obviously Hindi-derived. "Hathi": elephant, "Raksha": demon/protector (fitting for Mama Wolf), "Sher Khan": tiger king. Others don't make immediate sense ("baaloo" = sand)

* CaliforniaDoubling: the end credits inform you that the movie was shot in Los Angeles.

* DuelingWorks: At least three ways.
** It would have become this with Warner Bros' upcoming ''Film/{{Mowgli}}'' directed by Creator/AndySerkis, which got its release pushed to December 2018 for this reason.
** With ''Film/TheLegendOfTarzan'', which features another wild man orphan.
** Also in a form with the James Bond film ''Film/{{Spectre}}'', which also has an orphan (Bond) as the protagonist and who also gets compared to the Cuckoo. Ironically, both films where James Bond meets his ArchEnemy Ernst Stavro Blofeld were released a few months before one of the landmark adaptations of ''The Jungle Book'' from Disney (the other movie where Bond met Blofeld for the first time, ''Film/YouOnlyLiveTwice'', came out the summer before classic ''Disney/TheJungleBook'' from Walt and Reithermann and starring Harris/Sanders/Holloway hit theaters; ''Spectre'' came out the winter before Favreau's film premiered). Two bits of trivia: Both ''Spectre'' and ''The Legend of Tarzan'', as a side note, feature Christoph Waltz playing the BigBad, and ''The Jungle Book'' has Christopher Walken, who played BigBad Max Zorin in Roger Moore's final Bond film, ''Film/AViewToAKill'' (released the same year as ''Disney/TheBlackCauldron'' and the original Walt Disney Classics VHS of ''Pinocchio'', 1985).

* ActorAllusion:
** After Shere Khan [[spoiler: kills Akela and takes over the wolf pack]], Raksha sees [[spoiler: him lying down with her cubs, who appear to be playing with him, [[ChildrenAreInnocent blissfully unaware of his true nature]] [[ImpliedDeathThreat as he looks]] [[WouldHurtAChild menacingly at Raksha]].]] In the 2014 film ''Film/{{No Good Deed|2014}}'', Idris Elba's character also did a similar thing with [[spoiler: the protagonist's daughter]].
** As Mowgli is led to meet with [[Creator/ChristopherWalken King Louie]], he stumbles upon some of his treasures. One of these being? [[Series/SaturdayNightLive A cowbell.]]
** Creator/BenKingsley playing a [[Film/{{Gandhi}} wise, kind, highly-respected Indian character]].
** This [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jS1BM9XRgvw isn't the first time]] Creator/GiancarloEsposito [[VideoGame/{{Destiny}} has recited the Law of the Jungle to youngsters]].
** The film's director Creator/JonFavreau [[CreatorCameo briefly appears]] as a [[SeldomSeenSpecies pygmy hog]], using the same voice he used for [[Film/{{Elf}} Mr. Narwhal]].

* CastingGag: Creator/LupitaNyongo plays a wolf. Lupita is a diminutive of Guadalupe which means "river of the wolf".

** It would have become this with Warner Bros' upcoming ''Film/{{Mowgli}}'' directed by Creator/AndySerkis, which got its release pushed to 2019 for this reason.

* OneOfUs: The film's director Creator/JonFavreau has often spoken of how big a fan he is of the 1967 Disney film. Creator/BillMurray, the voice of Baloo, is also said to be fond of the original Kipling works.

** It would have become this with Warner Bros' upcoming ''Film/{{Mowgli}}'' directed by Creator/AndySerkis, which got its release pushed to October 2018 for this reason.

** It would have become this with Warner Bros' upcoming ''Film/JungleBookOrigins'' directed by Creator/AndySerkis, which got its release date pushed back partly for this reason.

* DuelingMovies: At least three ways.

* RelationshipVoiceActor: A chunk of the cast (including the director) has been in the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse.
** In a similar way, Baloo's voice actor, Bill Murray, is brothers with another voice for the bear, Brian Doyle-Murray. Brian voiced Baloo in the 1998 adaptation, Mowgli's Story, which was ''also'' by Disney.
* PlayingAgainstType: This is the third time Idris Elba has played a villainous character, after 2014's ''Film/{{No Good Deed|2014}}'' and 2015's ''Film/BeastsOfNoNation''. He would do this a fourth time in 2016 for ''Film/StarTrekBeyond'', which came out a few months later, meaning he may be moving into villain acting.
** Though his arguably most famous role was that of [[Series/TheWire Stringer Bell]], so one could say he's just returning to his roots.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: From the looks of it, this movie may at one time have considered ''averting'' Kaa's AdaptationalVillainy for once, [[http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/disney/images/e/e9/Jungle_Book_-_Concept_Art_3.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20160413153142 as concept art exists of Bagheera and Baloo apparently coming to her for help (which they do in the book)]].

* DuelingMovies: At least three ways

** And with ''Film/TheLegendOfTarzan'', which features another wild man orphan.

** With Warner Bros' upcoming ''Film/JungleBookOrigins'' directed by Creator/AndySerkis. That one, however, got pushed back.

** A few foreign versions also bring out many famous people to dub, such as Brazil and India (the latter of whom has [[Film/LifeOfPi Irrfan]] [[Film/JurassicWorld Khan]] as Baloo, wuth Creator/PriyankaChopra as Kaa in the Hindi dub).

** Though his arguably most famous role was that of [[TheWire Stringer Bell]], so one could say he's just returning to his roots.

* CareerRessurection: This film helped writer Justin Marks recover after bombing with ''Film/StreetFighterTheLegendOfChunLi''.

* ProductionPosse: Several of Favreau's previous collaborators, Creator/ScarlettJohansson, Garry Shandling and composer John Debney, appeared in and worked on the film. Though Favreau didn't direct, he and Creator/BenKinglsey also worked together in ''Film/IronMan3''.

** Also in a form with the James Bond film ''Film/{{Spectre}}'', which also has an orphan (Bond) as the protagonist and who also gets compared to the Cuckoo. Ironically, both films where James Bond meets his ArchEnemy Ernst Stavro Blofeld were released a few months before one of the landmark adaptations of ''The Jungle Book'' from Disney (the other movie where Bond met Blofeld for the first time, ''Film/YouOnlyLiveTwice'', came out the summer before classic ''Disney/TheJungleBook'' from Walt and Reithermann and starring Harris/Sanders/Holloway hit theaters; ''Spectre'' came out the winter before Favreau's film premiered). Both ''Spectre'' and ''The Legend of Tarzan'', as a side note, feature Christoph Waltz playing the BigBad.