The U.K. premiere of Disney’s remake of animated classic The Lion King finally took place over the weekend in London on Sunday (14th July). As can be expected with a film project of this size, the red (or, technically, yellow) carpet was expected to be filled with top line talent — and it didn’t disappoint!
As well as stars of the film, including Florence Kasumba and Chiwetel Ejiofor, The Lion King’s European premiere in London’s Leicester Square had A-Listers a-plenty, as well as literal royalty. In a week filled with sporting events, as well as being a new mother, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex added one more stop to her busy schedule – as she joined her husband Prince Harry to the Sunday premiere. The London event marked the first big night out since the Duke and Duchess became proud parents to baby Archie Harrison.
However, also in attendance was Beyoncé, who voices Nala in the film, with husband Jay Z. Fans were understandably excited for the prospect of the Duchess of Sussex and Beyoncé crossing paths. Prior to the moment, royal commentator Omid Scobi took to Twitter stating: “Buckingham Palace confirm that Duchess Meghan will be joining Harry on the carpet for the #LionKing premiere this Sunday. And yes, @Beyonce’s people tell me that she will be attending. Expect the Internet break down.”
If you can recall, only a couple of months ago the multi-award winning artist and her rapper husband used a portrait of Meghan to accept their joint BRIT award; casting Meghan as the not only the British Princess, but also the princess for music royalty. This speaks volumes of how highly the two artists look up to the Black American-British princess.
In addition to this tribute, Beyoncé went one step further by congratulating “In honor of Black History Month, we bow down to one of our Melanated Monas. Congrats on your pregnancy! We wish you so much joy,” as she took to her Instagram to show her support.
The epic introduction between the two legends was captured on video and shared via Twitter. The pair shared a warm hug and wide smiles and the two queens in the own right beamed at each other. Although, we cannot hear exactly what words of exchange were shared between the two, the eagle-eyed fans peering over were able to make out what Beyoncé is telling the dutchess: “Your baby is so beautiful.” How precious!” It’s not everyday Queen Bey gets starstruck, but when asked about the meeting of the Duke and Dutchess of Sussex, she described them as “so sweet.”
The premiere was held in support of the Prince’s conservation work through The Royal Foundation. In addition, Walt Disney have also announced #ProtectThePride, a campaign to protect the dwindling lion population across Africa and the globe.
