Disney's 'Mulan' Live Action Remake Updates: Disney Promises All Asian Casts
On the 4th of October, Tuesday, Disney confirmed that it would be making a live-adaptation of the classic animated cartoon film, Mulan, and that casting for actors would begin soon.
In response to this, fans were delighted to discover that Mulan would be played by a Chinese actress, with Walt Disney Pictures beginning a worldwide search for suitable actors, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
Mulan is based on a legendary Chinese warrior Fa/Hua Mulan. As the story goes, she disguised herself as male in order to take the place of her ageing father in the Chinese army, who was too weak to fight in a war, going on to achieve many victories and praises. That being said, it is highly important to translate this amazing story as it truly deserves.
However, on April 2015, a petition was created online urging Disney not to "whitewash" the said "Mulan" Live Action production. Further discontent spread when a person wrote an essay claiming to have had a look at the spec script purchased by Disney for the film. In the first draft, the character of Shang would be played by "a 30-something European trader" who would help defend China after having fallen for Mulan. Currently, the petition has received over 100,000 signatures.
New writers Amanda Silver and Rick Jaffa, were hired to work on on the film, with a source telling Vulture that, "The spec-script was a jumping-off point for a new take on the story that incorporated both the animated movie and the original ballad of Mulan." They go on to assure that, "Mulan is, and will always be the lead character in the story, and all primary roles, including the love interest, are Chinese."
Going back to the petition, it noted that: "The character, story, and fans deserve the best retelling of the story Disney can produce, and although the film was only announced March 30th, this disturbing trend of whitewashing in big-budget movies can't get a chance to take root in Mulan as well, and if any company can afford to 'risk' adapting a beloved story with a cast of POCs, it's Disney."
It is important to remember that Mulan was voiced by Ming-Na Wen, actress, in the 1998 animated original, with actress and singer Lea Salonga providing her singing voice.
Although a director has yet to be announced, Jason Reed has been enlisted to produce the project alongside Chris Bender and Jake Weiner, according to International Business Times. The studio is hoping that the film will emulate the success of live-action movies including Maleficent, The Jungle Book and Cinderella. The highly-anticipated Beauty And The Beast, starring Emma Watson as Belle, hits cinemas in March 2017.
Mulan is expected to premiere in US and UK cinemas on the 2nd of November 2018.
