fact, he's less complicated than Morris the Cat or Sylvester." Hunter continued, "Simba the Exile is even less interesting than Simba the Prince." Christopher Null of Contactmusic.com was critical of Weaver's performance as the singing voice of Young Simba, writing, "If there's anything annoying about the film, it's the singing. Young Simba sounds like a young Michael Jackson ... You almost don't want him to succeed." However, Null reacted more positively towards Broderick's performance. Despite the character's mixed reception, several critics have awarded specific praise to Broderick for his portrayal of Simba, including the San Francisco Chronicles Peter Stack and The Washington Posts Desson Howe. Annette Basile of FilmInk described Broderick's performance as "excellent," while Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian called it "sumptuous." Digital Spy's Mayer Nissim described Broderick's portrayal of Simba as "wonderful." A number of critics and animators have claimed striking similarities between Simba and Kimba, the protagonist of Osamu Tezuka's 1960s Japanese anime series Kimba the White Lion, and they believe Simba may have been inspired by Kimba. Impact and popularity During the film's opening number, "Circle of Life", Rafiki introduces a newborn Simba to the crowd of animals gathered at the foot of Pride Rock by holding him high above their heads while parents Mufasa and Sarabi look on. Since the film's 1994 release, this scene has grown to iconic status. In November 2002, singer Michael Jackson sparked controversy by holding his son, Blanket, over the protective railing of a hotel balcony in Berlin. The event was witnessed by a large crowd of spectators who were watching from below. Some sources have claimed that Jackson was harmlessly attempting to emulate the scene from The Lion King. When Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge went into labor with hers and Prince William's baby in July 2013, the idea that the couple should reenact the famous scene from The Lion King became quite popular among Twitter users. Radio journalist Darren Simpson reportedly tweeted, "when your baby arrives please re-enact the scene from the Lion King". Shortly after Middleton gave birth to a boy, England native Tommy Peto initiated a petition asking the couple to welcome their baby by having the Archbishop of Canterbury emulate the scene by holding him over the balcony of Buckingham Palace. Ultimately, the idea was deemed "outside the responsibility of the government" and was declined. The scene has found itself the subject of both reference