Disney's The Jungle Book Is Coming to Digital HD Earlier Than Expected

After earning over $900 million at the worldwide box office and receiving the highest-praise from critics and audiences alike, Walt Disney Studios proudly announced today that their live-action take on The Jungle Book will be available early on Digital HD and Disney Movies Anywhere on August 23, and on Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD and On-Demand on August 30.

"The original Jungle Book was something I grew up with," director Jon Favreau says in the video that accompanied today's announcement. "And so as we develop how to turn it into a live-action film, we had to ask: How do we give the audience the biggest, best experience they can have? The goal here is for people to not know what is real and what is not real. Where the set ends and where the CG begins. But that requires a tremendous amount of care. Every single shot requires hundreds of people. I feel confident that were at that threshold that with the proper planning we can achieve naturalism. And for me? That's exciting."

Blu-ray & DIGITAL HD bonus features include:

"The Jungle Book" Reimagined – Favreau sits down with producer Brigham Taylor and visual effects supervisor Robert Legato to discuss "The Jungle Book" and reflect on the years they devoted to the reimagining of this timeless tale. Discover how Rudyard Kipling's original stories and the classic animated film influenced their unique approach, witness the technical wizardry that enabled the team to create a believable and thrilling movie-going experience, and learn how they borrowed a page from Walt Disney's innovation playbook to make it all happen. Lastly, meet the all-star voice cast who help bring the film's colorful characters to life, as well as the musicians who accent the adventure with a majestic music score.

I Am Mowgli – Follow the extraordinary journey of 12-year-old Neel Sethi, who was selected from thousands of hopefuls worldwide to play Mowgli "alongside" some of today's biggest movie stars. Get a glimpse of Neel's life before Hollywood came calling, check out his audition that sealed the deal, and see how a close-working relationship with Favreau brought out his best. Plus, Neel shares how filming "The Jungle Book" was one wild ride, from working alongside imaginary animals to performing some super-fun stunts.

King Louie's Temple: Layer by Layer – So, exactly how do you create a musical number featuring one man-cub, a massive, legendary ape and an army of wild and wily monkeys in the Seeonee jungle? Viewers are granted rare and unique access to the development of the "I Wan'na Be Like You" sequence in which King Louie attempts to coerce Mowgli into giving up Man's deadly "red flower" (fire). A fast-moving musical progression reel showcases storyboards, animatics, Christopher Walken's recording session and visual effects layers, which ultimately merge to form one of the film's most memorable scenes. Audio

Commentary – Favreau delivers his scene-by-scene perspective on the live-action adventure "The Jungle Book" with all the candor and humor you'd expect from this multi-talented actor-writer-director-producer.