The Lion King II: Simba's Pride (also titled as The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride) is a 1998 American animated direct-to-video musical romantic drama film. It is the sequel to Disney's 1994 animated feature film, The Lion King, with its plot influenced by William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, and the second installment in The Lion King trilogy. According to director Darrell Rooney, the final draft gradually became a variation of Romeo and Juliet.

Plot

King Simba and Queen Nala's newborn daughter Kiara is presented to the gathered animals of the Pride Lands. After Kiara has grown into a young cub, she becomes frustrated with her father's parenting, so Simba has his childhood friends Timon and Pumbaa accompany her out of concern for her safety. Over Simba's protestations, Kiara wanders off alone into the barren Outlands — home to an enemy pride of Scar's exiled followers called the Outsiders — and encounters another cub, Kovu. After narrowly escaping a crocodile-infested river, they become friendly with each other. When Simba comes across Kovu and Kiara playing, he misinterprets it as fighting and confronts Kovu just as he is confronted by Zira, Kovu's mother and the Outsiders' leader. Simba later explains to her the responsibilities of queenship and that everyone is a part of each other. Zira, who is secretly training Kovu as an assassin, realizes she can use her son's friendship with Kiara to kill Simba and usurp the throne. Meanwhile, the spirit of Simba's deceased father, Mufasa, plans to bring Kiara and Kovu together to reunite the Pridelanders and the Outsiders.

Awards