Elton John on the 'Lion King' remake: It's 'a huge disappointment'

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Elton John is not happy with the newest version of "The Lion King."

John, who wrote the music for "The Lion King" in the '90s, spoke with British GQ about his upcoming memoir, "Me," and his thoughts on Disney's remake of the 1994 classic.

"The new version of The Lion King was a huge disappointment to me because I believe they messed the music up," John, 72, said. "Music was so much a part of the original and the music in the current film didn’t have the same impact."

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He continued: "The magic was lost."

John was also not heavily involved in the music for the new film, which he found upsetting.

"I wish I’d been invited to the party more, but the creative vision for the film and its music was different this time around and I wasn’t really welcomed or treated with the same level of respect," he said.

A new song, "Never Too Late," was composed by John for the film, which played over the end credits. The film also featured his songs from the original including "Circle of Life," "Hakuna Matata" and "Can You Feel the Love Tonight?"

John spoke on the soundtrack's chart performance, noting that it came nowhere near the original's, which was the best selling album of 1994.

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In America, the soundtrack was certified diamond and peaked at number one on the US Billboard 200. The soundtrack from the new film peaked only at number 13.

The 2019 soundtrack featured a new song by Beyonce titled "Spirit," and was accompanied by Beyonce's latest album inspired by the classic tale, "The Lion King: The Gift." "The Gift" debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200.

John says that his lack of involvement in the music makes him "extremely sad," but he's glad "that the right spirit for the music lives on with the 'Lion King' stage musical."

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"The Lion King" director and producer Jon Favreau did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment.