Mufasa

Mufasa is Simba's father, and the previous king of the Pride Lands. Mufasa taught Simba how past kings live in the stars, and would always be there to guide him in times of need.

Kingdom Hearts II
When Simba was a small cub, Mufasa came to Wildebeest Gorge to save him from being crushed by stampeding wildebeests. Although he saved Simba, he had to climb a cliff to exit the gorge. When he got to the top, he was tossed off the cliff by his own brother, Scar, and crushed by the stampede down below. After his death, Scar convinced Simba that it was Simba's fault that Mufasa had died, and encouraged him to run away and never return. Scar then told the other lions that both Mufasa and Simba had died in the stampede, allowing him to take control of the Pride Lands as its new king.

Later, Mufasa appeared to Simba as a spirit to enlighten Simba's courage to take his role as the Pride Land's true king by usurping Scar's leadership, and after Scar is defeated by Simba and Sora, Mufasa shows his gratitude to Sora by opening a new path for him.

Design
Mufasa is a lion with light orange fur, except for the fur on his belly, the bottoms of his paws, and around his mouth, which is light peach-colored. His mane, which is quite long, is reddish brown. It parts on the right side of the top of his head, not unlike human hair. Mufasa's eyes are red and his sclera are yellow, while his eyebrows are black. His ears a just barely visible poking through his mane. He has ten dark-colored whiskers, five on either side of his upper lip. There is a tuft of reddish brown fur on the tip of his tail.

Personality
Mufasa is the once proud king of the Pride Lands. Mufasa is considered by many animals of the Pride Lands to be the epitome of strength and wisdom. This is especially true for his son, Simba, who is always comparing himself to his great father. Outside of physical prowess, Mufasa is also strong in giving advice and encouragement to the low-self esteemed Simba.

Origin
Mufasa originally appeared in the 1994 film , voiced by (whose audio clips are recycled in Kingdom Hearts II). In the film, he appears as the great and wise ruler of the Pride Lands. There, he lives happily with his mate, Sarabi, and their son, Simba. However, Mufasa's brother, Scar, secretly envies his reign as ruler of the Pride Lands and desires to overthrow him. At the beginning of the film, Mufasa teaches a young Simba about the kingdom and the responsibilities he will have once he is king. After forbidding Simba to journey into the Elephant Graveyard, he is called away to deal with hyenas in the Pride Lands. Through Scar's manipulation, Simba and his friend Nala travels into the Elephant Graveyard in Scar's plot to kill him, but Mufasa fortunately arrives and saves Simba and Nala from being killed by Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed. Mufasa later scolds Simba for disobeying his warning, though he forgives him shorty afterwards.

The next day, Mufasa's steward, Zazu, informs him about an unusual migration of wildebeest herd in the lands. When Scar reveals to Mufasa that Simba was trapped in a gorge with the wildebeest, Mufasa rushes to save his son from the stampede. Although he was successful on rescuing Simba, Mufasa was struggling at the edge of the cliff. He begs Scar to help him, but Scar flung his brother off the cliff and watch as he is trampled to death. Deceived by Scar that it was his fault his father died, Simba runs away from the Pride Lands. Many years later, Mufasa's spirit reveals to Rafiki that Simba is still alive, prompting the shaman to search for him. Rafiki takes Simba to a small, magical pool which brings upon Mufasa's ghost up in the sky. As the rightful heir to the Pride Lands, Mufasa encourages Simba that to remember who he is and return to the Pride Lands. Following Scar's defeat, Mufasa reminds Simba one last time to remember who he is.