After a worldwide casting search that included thousands of auditions, Disney and director Jon Favreau have cast 10-year-old Neel Sethi as Mowgli in the upcoming The Jungle Book adaptation. The project has previously been described as a mix between live-action and animation, but today’s casting announcement for Sethi reveals that he will be the only actor seen onscreen in the film; this newcomer will be carrying the entire movie on his shoulders. Though Sethi has no professional experience, Favreau and his team feel confident that has the charisma and instincts to bring this new iteration of Rudyard Kipling’s classic story to life.
Sethi will be working with a number of CG characters, as Idris Elba is onboard to voice Shere Khan, Scarlett Johansson will voice Kaa, Lupita Nyong’o is voicing Rakcha, and Sir Ben Kingsley will voice the character of Bagheera. The Jungle Book is currently in production and is scheduled for release in 3D on October 9, 2015. [source: Collider]
