Jason Weaver was a young charming actor with a great Film and Television presence and voice in 1994. That voice landed him a role in singing the vocals for Disney’s 1994 The Lion King for the young Simba character.
In an interview with VLADTV, Weaver revealed that he was offered a $2 million rate for his role from Disney with no royalties. At the beginning, the actor was elated, however, his mother negotiated a royalty deal that has garnered checks over time, ever since his 1994 gig. Weaver told VLADTV, ““I remember it was like $2 million,” said Weaver. “You gotta remember, they’re coming off of Beauty and the Beast. They’re coming off of Aladdin. Disney had bread.”
Weaver was giving $100,000 plus royalties, which means he has now received well over the $2 million initially offered by Disney. “Disney had a reputation for re-releasing stuff,” he explained. “I think at that time they had put out Sleeping Beauty and some of their old catalog from when Walt Disney was alive. They were releasing that stuff when they were releasing the new Disney stuff, so she [Weaver’s mother] was able to see the playing field and go, ‘Wait a minute, this is going to make a lot of money over time, so what happens when my son turns 40? Is he going to be able to get a check for this when they eventually re-release this.”
Smart move for Weaver, and good call by his mom.