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Kim Kardashian and Kanye West’s daughter, North West, has already performed at Paris Fashion Week, the Accor Arena, and now, the Hollywood Bowl, all by the age of 10. She took the stage at the world-famous outdoor theater for The Lion King’s 30th Anniversary concert on May 24, but her performance has gone viral for the wrong reasons.
On Tuesday, following days of viral videos on the internet with people sharing their reactions and dissatisfaction with her performance, Kim shared a gallery of photos of her in character during a photoshoot.
Kim’s post is filled with negative backlash in the comments. “DADS EGO WITH MOMS TALENT,” “Someone actually talented for the song should’ve gotten the role,” “Close enough… That was the worst Lion King performance we’ve ever seen, just put her in acting/dance classes,” and “she was off-key the whole time and pretty much just screaming at one point,” read some of the top-liked comments.
North played Simba in the concert, singing and dancing to the famous song “I Just Can’t Wait To Be King.” Video of the performance quickly made its way to social media, and considering the prestigious show should require amazing singing and dancing from any performer - child or adult - many are upset that she got the role and attribute it to her being a nepo baby.
With murmurs that Kim could have pulled some strings for North to land the role, a source alleged to the DailyMail that the Kardashian family’s close connection to the producers played a “large” part. The insider claimed that North didn’t have to “compete against anyone else for the part” and “The Lion King at the Hollywood Bowl and The Kardashians are both produced by the same production company, Fulwell 73 Productions.”
“Gabe Turner, who is a partner in Fulwell, is also the creative showrunner for The Lion King,” the source continued, claiming it was a “shoe-in” for North. They were reportedly told “that if she can carry a note, the gig is hers.”
Not only did North catch heat, but so did her costume, with people saying she resembled more of a bird than a lion and looked different than the rest of the ensemble. She wore a yellow sweatshirt with a furry hood, matching shorts, socks, and furry slippers. A spokesperson involved with the show confirmed to PEOPLE that North was not dressed by production. Costume designer Marina Toybina was responsible for the costumes worn by the other performers and dancers.