Live-Action 'The Prince of Egypt' Musical Coming to Theaters

The musical theater world has endured the same fate as the film industry. They must make and fund projects rooted in beloved, successful franchises to grab massive attendance. If done well, projects like Disney’s The Lion King, Beetlejuice: The Musical, and Shrek the Musical can be huge megahits. Another movie adaptation has come full circle as a cherished animated classic was changed into a stage musical, which is now coming back to movie theaters.

Disney has held a clear monopoly in animation since their Renaissance Era with The Little Mermaid in 1989. In the 1990s, Warner Brothers Animation was its main competitor as they churned out cinematic classics such as, Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, Cats Don’t Dance, and The Iron Giant.

Amblin Entertainment also came out with animated films like An American Tail, Balto, We’re Back! A Dinosaur’s Story, and The Land Before Time. While these non-Disney entries rivaled Disney Animation, they could never eclipse them at the box office long term.

DreamWorks Animation would become the main rival to Disney in the late 90s and 2000s with animated works that included, Shrek, Kung Fu Panda and How to Train Your Dragon. However, those franchises would not have been possible without the first acclaimed DreamWorks triumph — The Prince of Egypt.

The Prince of Egypt (1998) was an animated reimagining of one of the most famous stories from The Bible. It centered around Moses (Val Kilmer), a man who uses the power of God to liberate the Jewish people from his adoptive brother, pharaoh Ramses (Ralph Fiennes). While this story has been retold countless times, this interpretation stood out due to its meticulously beautiful hand-drawn animation and its Oscar-winning music.

DreamWorks’ masterpiece continued its legacy when The Prince of Egypt Musical debuted in London’s WestEnd in February 2020, then reopened in summer 2021. It was a colossal success that was written by the original screenwriter, Philip LaZebnik, and Wicked composer, Stephen Schwartz returned to oversee the music and lyrics.

This musical triumph has now made its way back to the big screen as DreamWorks will be releasing the live-action musical into U.S. movie theaters next month. The decision was made to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the original cinematic treasure. Other fans speculate that this choice is to also introduce the new musical to American audiences in hopes of getting a Broadway run.

The Prince of Egypt Musical will hit select theaters October 19, 2023 with the filmed stage production available to rent or purchase on December 5, 2023. 

Should this musical have an American tour? Should DreamWorks pull a Disney and do a live-action remake?