This is why Mushu isn’t in Disney’s live-action Mulan movie
By Ariba Bhuvad
Disney’s upcoming live-action remake of Mulan is missing a character: Mushu the dragon, voiced by Eddie Murphy in the 1998 animated original. I remember when details about the live-action movie began coming out, this was one of the reveals. It collectively broke our hearts because who doesn’t love Mushu?
A professor at USC, Stanley Rosen, spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about why this particular character was omitted from the live-action Mulan. He’s an expert in Chinese politics and society, and shed some light on the cultural aspect of this decision. “Mushu was very popular in the U.S., but the Chinese hated it,” he explained. “This kind of miniature dragon trivialized their culture.”
The producers had many conversations about the tone of the movie, and ultimately decided on something a little more serious than could be achieved with a tiny dragon making wisecracks every other minute, at least according to producer Jason Reed. “This story in a way that is more real, more relatable, where we don’t have the benefit of the joke to hide behind things that might be uncomfortable and we don’t break into song to tell us the subtext.”
So it’s not just Mushu that is missing from this remake, it’s the music, too. No “I’ll Make A Man Out Of You”? Say it ain’t so! The internet isn’t too happy about the fact that we won’t be getting any of the original songs, and I am in 100% agreement — we want the music!
Whether you’re Team “We Want Mushu” or Team “I’ll Make A Man Out Of You” or Team “I Don’t Care But I’m Still Watching Anyway,” Mulan is just a month away from premiering, and tickets are officially available as of today.
And I’ll say this: the promos for Mulan are incredibly beautiful, promising, and breathtaking, and I can’t wait to see the fight sequences come to life on the big screen! The movie opens on March 27.
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h/t Uproxx