He is first seen in the film during the opening sequence in which Simba is presented. Zazu is also shown to have a sense of humor, as he was able to make a joke about turning Scar into a throw rug (to which he adds that Mufasa can beat him 'whenever he gets dirty').Īs King Mufasa's majordomo and close friend (he is one of the few who call Mufasa by his name), he is very serious and always sticks to the rules. He tends to panic during emergencies, such as the wildebeest stampede. But it is implied that he can be brave when given the chance. As majordomo to King Mufasa, his proper, dignified, nervous, and easily-rattled personality is the polar opposite in temperament of most of the rest of the cast. Zazu redeems himself though as he spies an army ant attack and alerts Mufasa to the problem.Īlthough trying to appear proper and dignified, Zazu seems to be a nervous wreck. He ends up reporting false stories to Mufasa as three young animals make up stories to trick Zazu. In the book, Zazu reports everything he sees and tends to jump to conclusions. When Zazu was young, Zuzu trained him to take her place when Mufasa's rule began. Zazu's mother, Zuzu, was a steward to Kopa's great-grandfather Ahadi. Mufasa realizes that the little hornbill is useful after all and appoints him as royal adviser. Zazu finds a tree trunk that Mufasa drags over to the pit, allowing Sarabi to climb out. But Mufasa can't find a way to rescue Sarabi. Zazu flies back to tell Mufasa who leaps up and runs to the gorge. Zazu flies over to where the vultures are anyway and sees that Sarabi has fallen into a pit and can't get out. He asks Mufasa if he wants him to fly over and see what's happening, but Mufasa is not concerned and lies down for a nap. One day Zazu notices some vultures hovering. Mufasa tires of this quickly as Zazu disturbs his hunts and his private time with his betrothed Sarabi. Zazu follows Mufasa around and watches over him. How could a small bird be of any use to a lion? Zazu is thankful and hopes that he can be of service to the Lion King someday. Young Zazu is about to be cooked and eaten by the young three hyenas (which explains his cry of 'Oh, no! Not the birdie boiler!' in the first movie) Shenzi, Banzai and Ed, when a young Mufasa comes along, frightens off the hyenas and saves him. Zazu has two conflicting histories as to how he became the King's majordomo:

Zazu actor