Everything We Know About the Mulan Remake So Far
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VOICE OVER: Elise Doucet
WRITTEN BY: Savannah Sher
We're finally getting a live-action version of one of our favorite Disney classics, and we CAN'T WAIT.
We're diving into all of the information we have about this upcoming anticipated release, and letting you in on everything we know so far about the live-action version of Mulan. So join MsMojo as we explore Everything We Know About the Mulan Remake So Far.
We're diving into all of the information we have about this upcoming anticipated release, and letting you in on everything we know so far about the live-action version of Mulan. So join MsMojo as we explore Everything We Know About the Mulan Remake So Far.
Everything We Know About the Mulan Remake So Far
We’re finally getting a live-action version of one of our favorite Disney classics. Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re doing a deep dive into Everything We Know About the Mulan Remake So Far.
For this essay, we’re looking at all the information we have about this upcoming release.
For those who wanted to see a female lead in a Disney movie who wasn’t a princess, the original “Mulan” was pretty much the best thing ever. At the time it felt like a badass feminist story, and while it hasn’t aged without receiving its fair share of critisism, it’s still considered a favorite by many. The story is based on an ancient Chinese legend about the female warrior Hua Mulan. Of course, the House of Mouse took creative liberties with the classic tale, but the basic premise is the same: a young woman must disguise herself as a man and join the army to spare her elderly father from danger.
In March of 2020, fans will get to see the story play out on the big screen once again, but this time in live-action. The premise will remain the same, but there will be some major differences in the story. Before we get into the plot though, let’s take a look at some behind the scenes details.
Directing the film is New Zealand’s Niki Caro, so it already gets some points for having a female director at the helm. While there have been women directing Disney films for a while, Caro has become the second to work with a budget of over $100 million, with Ava DuVernay being the first for “A Wrinkle in Time”. Caro is best known for her film “Whale Rider”, though she has worked on several projects with strong female leads. One example is 2005’s “North Country”, starring Charlize Theron and Frances McDormand, both of whom received Oscar nods for their performances.
Clearly, hiring women to work on the project was a priority for Disney, because three out of the film’s four writers are female. Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, Lauren Hynek and Elizabeth Martin collarborated on the script. Jaffa and Silver already have some major action movie experience under their belts, having worked together on “Jurassic World” and the recent “Planet of the Apes” trilogy. Some HAVE called into question the fact that none of these behind-the-scenes talents are of Chinese heritage, however, which could have added more authority and diversity to the production.
Of course, what many fans are most interested in is “Mulan’s” cast. Because of fears that the story would be whitewashed, Disney was closely scrutinised during the casting process. The title role of Mulan is being taken on by Liu Yifei, a Chinese-American actor and singer who’s one of the biggest stars in Chinese cinema. In fact, in 2009 she was called one of the “New Four Dan Actresses”, which basically makes her one of the biggest female stars in the country. More familiar to Western audiences are martial arts star Jet Li, who will be playing the part of the emperor, and Rosalind Chao, playing Mulan’s mother.
The question people are really curious to have answered though is how closely this new version of “Mulan” will follow the beloved 1998 film. And perhaps it might upset some fans to know that it looks like there’ll be a lot of major changes. The important thing to remember though is that in many ways, Disney is attempting to more closely follow the original legend - a commendable move even if it’s generated some controversy.
However, there’ll also be plot elements not seen in the ancient poem or in the 1998 animated version. Notably, the trailer has Mulan about to be married off, with a matchmaker teaching her how to be a good and respectable wife. This plot point has already ruffled some feathers, because it introduces stereotypes that weren’t even present in the original text. There have also been some critiques of historical inaccuracies and anachronisms. For example, Mulan’s house isn’t accurate given the story’s supposed location or time period.
Another new story element is that Mulan actually has a sister in the live-action film, rather than being an only child. Xana Tang will be playing Mulan’s sister, who at the time of writing is still an unnamed character. We can’t say for sure what the purpose of this addition is in terms of the plot, but perhaps it will be interesting for Mulan to have another woman to share her thoughts and feelings with.
An even bigger change is the story’s principal antagonist. As we all remember, the terrifying leader of the Huns, Shan Yu, led the charge in 1998’s “Mulan”. In the live-action adaptation, a witch will be the big bad instead. The character is being played by actress Gong Li, and as of now we don’t have many details about how her role will be worked into the plot.
Fans of Captain Li Shang from the animated version will be disappointed to hear that we won’t get to meet his live action counterpart in the 2020 remake. One of the elements that people really loved about the story told in the 1998 film was that Shang began to have feelings for Mulan before knowing she was a woman, which has made him into something of a bisexual Disney icon - something pretty hard to come by. Shang is being replaced by a character named Chen Honghui, and according to casting calls, only falls in love with Mulan after her gender reveal - which to be honest is a lot less compelling.
The animated version of “Mulan”, like many other Disney classics, is a full blown musical, and has some of the most underrated songs in the entire Disney canon. Hardcore fans absolutely love the original tunes from the movie, but it looks like we probably won’t be seeing renditions of them in the upcoming live action version. While Niki Caro initially said that there wouldn’t be musical numbers in the movie, the film’s director amended her statement more recently to say that they are "still exploring the role that music's going to play in it, but for sure there will be music."
People may be prepared to put up with a lack of musical numbers, but one thing they may not stand for is a no-show by Mulan’s tiny dragon buddy Mushu. And as of now, things aren’t looking good. Going by the trailer, it looks like this movie is taking on a more serious tone, so perhaps there isn’t much room for wise-cracking talking animals. While reports have said that Mushu will be part of the movie in some way, there’s currently no casting news on who’ll voice the character, nor does he appear on the IMDB page for the film. To be honest, it’s kind of unclear how he could possibly be incorporated, but hey, hopefully the people at Disney will figure out a creative way to keep the fans happy.
What do you think about the outlook for the movie so far? Will you be seeing it on opening night? Let us know in the comments.
We’re finally getting a live-action version of one of our favorite Disney classics. Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re doing a deep dive into Everything We Know About the Mulan Remake So Far.
For this essay, we’re looking at all the information we have about this upcoming release.
For those who wanted to see a female lead in a Disney movie who wasn’t a princess, the original “Mulan” was pretty much the best thing ever. At the time it felt like a badass feminist story, and while it hasn’t aged without receiving its fair share of critisism, it’s still considered a favorite by many. The story is based on an ancient Chinese legend about the female warrior Hua Mulan. Of course, the House of Mouse took creative liberties with the classic tale, but the basic premise is the same: a young woman must disguise herself as a man and join the army to spare her elderly father from danger.
In March of 2020, fans will get to see the story play out on the big screen once again, but this time in live-action. The premise will remain the same, but there will be some major differences in the story. Before we get into the plot though, let’s take a look at some behind the scenes details.
Directing the film is New Zealand’s Niki Caro, so it already gets some points for having a female director at the helm. While there have been women directing Disney films for a while, Caro has become the second to work with a budget of over $100 million, with Ava DuVernay being the first for “A Wrinkle in Time”. Caro is best known for her film “Whale Rider”, though she has worked on several projects with strong female leads. One example is 2005’s “North Country”, starring Charlize Theron and Frances McDormand, both of whom received Oscar nods for their performances.
Clearly, hiring women to work on the project was a priority for Disney, because three out of the film’s four writers are female. Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, Lauren Hynek and Elizabeth Martin collarborated on the script. Jaffa and Silver already have some major action movie experience under their belts, having worked together on “Jurassic World” and the recent “Planet of the Apes” trilogy. Some HAVE called into question the fact that none of these behind-the-scenes talents are of Chinese heritage, however, which could have added more authority and diversity to the production.
Of course, what many fans are most interested in is “Mulan’s” cast. Because of fears that the story would be whitewashed, Disney was closely scrutinised during the casting process. The title role of Mulan is being taken on by Liu Yifei, a Chinese-American actor and singer who’s one of the biggest stars in Chinese cinema. In fact, in 2009 she was called one of the “New Four Dan Actresses”, which basically makes her one of the biggest female stars in the country. More familiar to Western audiences are martial arts star Jet Li, who will be playing the part of the emperor, and Rosalind Chao, playing Mulan’s mother.
The question people are really curious to have answered though is how closely this new version of “Mulan” will follow the beloved 1998 film. And perhaps it might upset some fans to know that it looks like there’ll be a lot of major changes. The important thing to remember though is that in many ways, Disney is attempting to more closely follow the original legend - a commendable move even if it’s generated some controversy.
However, there’ll also be plot elements not seen in the ancient poem or in the 1998 animated version. Notably, the trailer has Mulan about to be married off, with a matchmaker teaching her how to be a good and respectable wife. This plot point has already ruffled some feathers, because it introduces stereotypes that weren’t even present in the original text. There have also been some critiques of historical inaccuracies and anachronisms. For example, Mulan’s house isn’t accurate given the story’s supposed location or time period.
Another new story element is that Mulan actually has a sister in the live-action film, rather than being an only child. Xana Tang will be playing Mulan’s sister, who at the time of writing is still an unnamed character. We can’t say for sure what the purpose of this addition is in terms of the plot, but perhaps it will be interesting for Mulan to have another woman to share her thoughts and feelings with.
An even bigger change is the story’s principal antagonist. As we all remember, the terrifying leader of the Huns, Shan Yu, led the charge in 1998’s “Mulan”. In the live-action adaptation, a witch will be the big bad instead. The character is being played by actress Gong Li, and as of now we don’t have many details about how her role will be worked into the plot.
Fans of Captain Li Shang from the animated version will be disappointed to hear that we won’t get to meet his live action counterpart in the 2020 remake. One of the elements that people really loved about the story told in the 1998 film was that Shang began to have feelings for Mulan before knowing she was a woman, which has made him into something of a bisexual Disney icon - something pretty hard to come by. Shang is being replaced by a character named Chen Honghui, and according to casting calls, only falls in love with Mulan after her gender reveal - which to be honest is a lot less compelling.
The animated version of “Mulan”, like many other Disney classics, is a full blown musical, and has some of the most underrated songs in the entire Disney canon. Hardcore fans absolutely love the original tunes from the movie, but it looks like we probably won’t be seeing renditions of them in the upcoming live action version. While Niki Caro initially said that there wouldn’t be musical numbers in the movie, the film’s director amended her statement more recently to say that they are "still exploring the role that music's going to play in it, but for sure there will be music."
People may be prepared to put up with a lack of musical numbers, but one thing they may not stand for is a no-show by Mulan’s tiny dragon buddy Mushu. And as of now, things aren’t looking good. Going by the trailer, it looks like this movie is taking on a more serious tone, so perhaps there isn’t much room for wise-cracking talking animals. While reports have said that Mushu will be part of the movie in some way, there’s currently no casting news on who’ll voice the character, nor does he appear on the IMDB page for the film. To be honest, it’s kind of unclear how he could possibly be incorporated, but hey, hopefully the people at Disney will figure out a creative way to keep the fans happy.
What do you think about the outlook for the movie so far? Will you be seeing it on opening night? Let us know in the comments.
