Original subtitles

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[Narrator] This is the true story

of a lion cub called Kio.

[meow]

His destiny,

to one day rise as king

like his father before him.

But his path to the throne

has not been easy.

♪ ♪

His family caught off guard.

Under attack!

Kio flees for his life.

[meow]

[growling]

[calling]

And now...

[calling]

...he is missing.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[calling]

♪ ♪

[calling]

♪ ♪

[calling]

[calling]

♪ ♪

Kio's mother, Summer,

desperately calls for him.

[calling]

She should be swiftly answered.

[calling]

[calling]

But nothing.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Separated from his mother,

a 12-week-old cub won't last long.

[meowing]

♪ ♪

[meow]

♪ ♪

[meow]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

In the chaos, Kio found a safe place to hide.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Happily reunited with his mother.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[meow]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[meowing]

[meow]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Lucky to have survived the buffalo attack,

Kio is safely back within the protection

of his family.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[meow]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Kio might be home,

but he is lonely.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Like any cub, he wants someone to play with.

[growling]

It's hard not to feel a bit nervous when you're so small.

♪ ♪

Kio does have brothers,

but they're all at least a year older.

[growling]

A rowdy gang of adolescents.

[growling]

[growling]

With a little nudge from Summer,

he does his best to be brave.

♪ ♪

[growling]

It's still all a bit too much.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Is there someone else to play with?

Someone his own size.

Like... a jackal.

Time to play Kio the Hunter.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Maybe he can take him by surprise...

...with a deadly pounce.

♪ ♪

Ah, not this time.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

At three months old,

Kio should be building bonds with other males.

But for now, the only true bond is still with his mother.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[roaring]

[roaring]

First light.

[roaring]

[roaring]

A mighty chorus rings out across the plains.

[roaring]

[roaring]

♪ ♪

A call for the pride to gather.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Summer's sister, Autumn, has been hunting.

♪ ♪

Breakfast for all.

But the pride are not the only hunters on these plains.

[whooping]

[whooping]

[whooping]

Hyenas.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Kio has never come face-to-face with them before.

And where there's one, there's always more.

[meow]

[whooping]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Their strength is in numbers.

Big numbers!

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

This was supposed to be a feast, not a fight!

[hyenas screaming]

[growling]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

The pride tries to force back the clan,

but there are just too many.

[screaming]

♪ ♪

The kings have arrived.

Maybe they can turn the tables.

[screaming]

[growling]

[screaming]

♪ ♪

Hyenas won't dare to stand up to this band of brothers.

The fight is over.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

But it leaves its mark on Kio.

He has seen the strength of male lions

when they work together.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

How can Kio ever follow in their footsteps?

There's only one way to become a king here.

♪ ♪

Kio must join forces with his older brothers...

♪ ♪

...if they'll accept him.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

In his young life,

Kio has learned by following his mother.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

And as he continues to grow,

so does his curiosity.

[animal snorts]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Soon he will no longer see the world...

♪ ♪

...through a cub's eyes.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Young lions must grow up fast.

[thunder]

As the seasons pass,

a transformation takes place.

Kio, now almost a year old,

is nearly as tall as his mother.

And his attitude has changed, too.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

It's only a lizard,

but for Kio, it's a rite of passage.

♪ ♪

And his older brothers have noticed.

♪ ♪

One by one, they see that he's bolder.

♪ ♪

Braver.

No longer the timid little brother.

He'll even wrestle with Ukingo and Djodjo,

his biggest brothers.

Maybe Kio will become one of the boys.

♪ ♪

[birds chirping]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

This young brotherhood could one day

set out to find their own kingdom.

But they must stay together.

To rule,

they will need to learn to hunt together,

fight together,

and protect each other.

♪ ♪

Just like their fathers.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Kio seems to have found his path to the throne.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

But here, on these plains,

the story is never that simple.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

The herds are always on the move.

♪ ♪

And the buffalo are heading off to fresh pastures.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

The plains are emptying.

And with that, the pride's food is gone.

What's worse,

it's getting hotter and drier every day.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Carried on the wind,

a hopeful sign.

Starlings often travel with migrating herds.

[chirping]

The arrival of the flock could be a promise

that the great wildebeest migration is on the move.

♪ ♪

All the food the pride could ever need.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

And they should be here at any moment.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

But the migration can be unpredictable.

And this year,

the wildebeest have found fresh grass somewhere else.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Without the wildebeest herds,

the pride will struggle to find enough food.

♪ ♪

There's no choice.

Summer and her sister, Autumn,

must lead the pride in search

of new hunting grounds...

...into lands Kio has never seen before.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Their search goes on for days.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

But there is no sign of the wildebeest herds anywhere.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Kio's never gone without food this long.

[insects buzzing]

[insects buzzing]

[animal grunts]

[buzzing]

Warthogs.

They may be small,

but the pride are desperate for anything to eat.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Warthogs are fast.

♪ ♪

The only way to catch them...

♪ ♪

...is to work together...

...and set a trap.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[grunt]

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

A meal, at last.

But one warthog is hardly enough to go around.

[growling]

Kio will be lucky to claim a scrap.

[growling]

[growling]

[growling]

And worse, when food is this scarce...

...the kings demand to feed first.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

They can take anything they want.

And they don't like to share.

♪ ♪

There's one simple rule.

Don't go near the kings when they're feeding.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

But Kio dares to approach.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

The kings allow it.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

They might tolerate Kio,

the youngest of the pride.

But not his older brothers.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[roar]

Especially when they cross the line.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

The brothers have shown they are getting more confident,

more powerful.

They could challenge the kings' rule.

[growl]

They must be driven out.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

[roar]

Even Ukingo, Kio's biggest brother,

cannot stand up to them.

♪ ♪

Kio can only watch as his brothers are banished.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

His closest allies are gone,

and the kings will never allow them back.

Kio is alone, again.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

His future now rests on the decision his mother must make.

♪ ♪

If Summer keeps him here,

within the protection of the pride,

Kio will be safe, for now.

But in these lands,

without brothers to support him,

a lion can never become a king.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Should Summer and Kio take a gamble

and leave to try to rejoin the brothers?

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

Summer makes the choice.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

She and Kio turn their back on the pride...

...the only family either of them have ever known.

♪ ♪

All for the sake of Kio's future.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

It's a huge risk.

But they're taking it together.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

After days of searching...

...nothing.

[calling]

His brothers could be miles away by now.

♪ ♪

[calling]

Has Summer made a mistake?

Will Kio ever see his brothers again?

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪