The Lion King co-director Roger Allers dies at 76

Roger Allers passed away

• Lion King director Roger Allers dies at 76 after a brief illness
• Allers was Oscar and Tony-nominated and helped define Disney's animation era
• He is survived by his children Leah and Aidan, and partner Genaro

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Roger Allers, a Tony and Oscar-nominated animated film director best known for directing The Lion King in 1994, passed away on Saturday. He was 76.

A Disney Animation representative told The Hollywood Reporter that Roger Allers passed away unexpectedly at his Santa Monica home after a brief illness.

Disney CEO Bob Iger said in a statement, “Roger Allers was a creative visionary whose many contributions to Disney will live on for generations to come.”

The statement continued, “He understood the power of great storytelling — how unforgettable characters, emotion and music can come together to create something timeless. His work helped define an era of animation that continues to inspire audiences around the world, and we are deeply grateful for everything he gave to Disney. Our hearts are with his family, friends and collaborators.”

Who was Roger Allers?

Rogers Allers was born in Rye, New York, on June 29, 1949. The filmmaker developed an early love for animation and graduated from Arizona State University with a degree in fine arts.

Together with co-director Rob Minkoff, he directed his first animated film, The Lion King, for Walt Disney Animation Studios. In its first theatrical run, the picture made around $979 million worldwide, not accounting for inflation, making it the highest-grossing movie of 1994.

In 1998, Allers was nominated for a Tony Award for best book of a musical after he and Irene Mecchi rewrote the screenplay for the Broadway production of The Lion King.

He wrote and directed the animated version of Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet in 2015, and he co-directed the animated film Open Season for Sony Studios in 2006.

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For 2006's The Little Matchgirl, Allers was nominated for an Academy Award for best animated short film.

Watership Down, The Bugs Bunny/Road-Runner Movie, Return to Never Land, Ted, Back to the Jurassic, and Ted 2 are some of his other credits.

Roger Allers is survived by his kids, Leah and Aidan, and his partner, Genaro.