Character from Madagascar by DreamWorks Animation
Alex's father and the alpha lion of the African reserve — a proud, strong warrior who spent years believing his son was dead and had to learn to accept the son who came back.
Zuba wanted Alex to be a warrior. Alex wanted to dance. The distance between those two facts defines their relationship for most of Madagascar 2. Zuba chased the truck that took his son. He got shot in the ear trying to save him. He gave up when he lost the trail, and for years he thought the cub was dead. When Alex came back as an adult lion who performed for humans and had never hunted anything, Zuba had to rebuild the relationship from zero. His arc is learning to see his son clearly: not as what he wanted, but as what Alex actually is. The moment he accepts Alex's dancing as strength is the film's emotional center. He's loyal, direct, and gets in trouble when Makunga outmaneuvers him politically, which is his blind spot. He expects fair fights. Makunga doesn't have those.
A tall, muscular middle-aged lion with a wide chest and shoulders, a full brown mane, and tan-colored fur. Carries himself with the weight of authority — the kind that comes from actually earning it rather than claiming it. Has a notch in his left ear from the bullet he took when Alex was captured.