Fluffy, Kopa, and Simba’s Pride

            Who is Fluffy? Why aren’t Fluffy and Kopa in Simba’s Pride (SP)? I’ll be exploring multiple fan theories surrounding these questions.

Fluffy is the cub from the end of The Lion King (TLK), who is basically just a placeholder. Fluffy looks nearly identical to baby Simba and is generally thought to be a male cub (though that isn’t necessarily true). It’s clear that the name Fluffy was a placeholder in and of itself. The question then becomes: who is Fluffy really? At the very least, we can say that Fluffy and Kiara aren’t the same cub because they look completely different.

Fluffy Is Kopa

My personal headcanon is that Fluffy is a stand-in for Kopa, Simba’s son in the Six New Adventures books. I’ll be working off of this theory for the rest of the post but it’s not the only explanation out there (for example, Fluffy could be a completely different cub who never made it into any other canon media). The evidence is pretty straightforward in this case though. Fluffy and Simba look very similar as infants.

Likewise, Kopa bears a striking resemblance to Simba as a cub.

Given the visual similarities between Fluffy and Kopa (who both look like Simba) and the fact that Fluffy is clearly not Kiara, it is relatively safe to conclude that Fluffy is actually baby Kopa. If that’s true then Kopa would canonically be at the end of TLK. Now, you may be wondering why Kopa doesn’t appear in SP and you wouldn’t be alone. There are multiple fan theories about what happened to him.

Kopa Died In An Accident

            One explanation is that Kopa died in some sort of an accident while he was a cub. This could have been anything from a rock slide to getting caught in a violent river to being in a wildfire. If he got himself in a situation that was too much for him to handle and no one was able to get to him in time then he probably wouldn’t survive. This would explain Simba’s general fear of Kiara getting hurt in the beginning of SP. Simba’s helicopter parenting would make a lot more sense if his firstborn cub had wondered off somewhere he shouldn’t have been and gotten himself killed. Simba wants Kiara to stay on the specific path he’s marked and not go wandering off, especially unchaperoned. He doesn’t want her to go anywhere she might have a serious accident.

Kopa Was Killed By Zira

            This is, by far, one of the most popular fan theories I’ve ever seen. It works pretty well with the canon because it would explain Simba’s general distain for Outlanders and his intense hatred for Zira in particular. If Zira killed Kopa then it would also make sense for Simba to be such a paranoid parent. He knows it’s a very real possibility that Zira could murder another one of his cubs at any time. Simba literally says, “you could have been killed today” after he caught Kiara playing with Kovu. This is something he’s really thought about and really fears, which would definitely make more sense if he’s already lost a cub.

            If Zira did kill Kopa it was likely an early attempt at vengeance for Simba reclaiming the throne and banishing Scar’s followers. I say attempt because, as evidenced by her grandiose plot in SP, Zira will only be satisfied when she has gotten Kovu secured as king in Scar’s place. Murdering Kopa would give her some immediate gratification while she was formulating an actual plan to take back Scar’s throne. Zira would almost certainly jump at any opportunity to hurt Simba so having a short-term plan to kill his firstborn cub would be just her speed. Doing so would send a message to Simba that Zira is not to be trifled with. It would also likely solidify Simba’s distrust and hatred of her.

Kopa Escaped Zira and Is Living Somewhere Else

            This theory is my favorite because Kopa lives. In this case he would flee the Pridelands and either encounters some nice animals (like Timon and Pumbaa) who take care of him, finds a new pride to join, or becomes a rogue. This works best as an explanation for why Kopa isn’t in SP when everyone in the Pridelands thinks that Kopa has died because Simba’s behavior would have the same reasoning I covered in the last theory. It works even better if Zira thinks that Kopa is dead too because then she wouldn’t go looking for him and he could actually get away.