Simba

Simba is a lion and is the main protagonist in the first Lion King film. He is the son of Mufasa and Sarabi. In all of his film appearances, adult Simba is voiced by Matthew Broderick. The adult Simba's singing voice is provided by Joseph Williams in the first film and Cam Clarke in the second. As a cub, Simba is voiced by Jonathan Taylor Thomas, with his singing voice provided by Jason Weaver. His best friend is Nala, who becomes his mate at the end of the first film.

Background
When Simba was born, he would inherit the throne after the passing of Mufasa. As a cub, he was very curious and carefree. This curiousity led Simba into serious trouble after his scheming uncle Scar told him about the elephant graveyard, which was where the hyenas Shenzi, Banzai and Ed were waiting to kill him. They almost succeeded but were chased off at the last minute by Mufasa. After this failure, a jealous Scar plotted to kill Mufasa by means of a huge wildebeest stampede. Unfortunately this plan did succeed and Simba was crushed, emotionally and spiritually. Scar also manages to convince Simba that he is responsible for the incident. After being told to run away by Scar, Simba started a new life in the jungle alongside Timon the meerkat and Pumbaa the warthog, who raise Simba on their philosophy of "hakuna matata" which means "no worries".

After many years, Simba reunites with Nala. She tries to persuade him to return, but he won't listen and still believes he is responsible for Mufasa's death. Although, after talking with the ghost of his father, Simba returns, fights and defeats Scar and becomes king, with Nala being his queen.

Appearance
As a cub, Simba has golden brown fur with a brown tuft at the end of his tail. The inside of his ears have black rings around them. When he grows into an adult during the "Hakuna Matata" sequence in the first film, he has an impressive red mane, much like his father, but still retains the golden brown fur he had as a cub.

In The Lion King II: Simba's Pride
In the Lion King II: Simba's Pride, Simba is the proud father of Princess Kiara. However, he is constantly very worried for his daughter's safety and therefore assigns Timon and Pumbaa as her babysitters. It is also revealed in this film that Simba banished followers of Scar to the Outlands, including Zira, who serves as the film's main antagonist. The entire plot of the movie centers upon Zira trying to get her revenge on Simba and take over the Pride Lands.