Mulan Filmmakers Reveal Why Mushu Won't Make It Into Live-Action Remake

Disney devotees have a lot to look forward to next month, as the live-action Mulan is slated to hit theaters nationwide. However, when it was first announced that the title character's trusty dragon sidekick Mushu wouldn't return, fans of the original animated flick voiced their concerns across social media. Nevertheless according to the masterminds in back of the live-action remake, the exclusion was intentional, a task to prepare the story more real, relatable, and, perhaps most importantly, respectful to Chinese culture.


Before filming started, Director Niki Caro went on a couple of studies trips to China, where she discussed with historians and brushed up on the original story, which came from a popular fifth or sixth century CE Chinese poem titled The Ballad of Mulan. "I definitely wasn't aware of how deeply critical it is to Mainland Chinese — all children were taught it," Caro told the Hollywood Reporter. "She is so meaningful that several places I went, people would mention, 'Well, she comes from my village.' It was good to feel that profound connection — although also terrifying."


Because of the connection that several Chinese people have with the time-honored tale, Caro wanted to stray from some of the fantastical elements seen in the animated movie, including Mushu. The decision to leave out the witty dragon, who was voiced by Eddie Murphy, was met with criticism from die-hard fans. But Caro feels certain it was ultimately the correct decision. "Mushu was very popular in the U.S., However the Chinese hated it," USC Professor Stanley Rosen, who specializes in Chinese politics and society, instructed them Hollywood Reporter. "This sort of miniature dragon trivialized their culture."


Yet Mushu wasn't the only thing Mulan filmmakers determined to leave out of the upcoming film. Unlike the animated movie, the live-action version will not be a musical. Caro also said that a scene featuring a kiss between Mulan (Liu Yifei) and her love interest Chen Honghui (Yoson An) was later edited out. "It was very cute, however the China office went, 'No, you can't, that doesn't feel right to the Chinese people,'" the director mentioned. "So we took it out."


Though some of these elements may be missed by those who fell in love with Disney's 1998 movie, deciding on whether or not to include Mushu and musical sequences was a hard-wrought discussion between the film's creators. "We had a lot of conversations about it," Producer Jason Reed mentioned. However in the end, they hoped to prepare something that did not have the benefit of the joke to hide in back of things that might be uncomfortable and we don't break into song to tell us the subtext."


What the film lacks in comedic dragons and roaring musical numbers every moment, it takes up for in picturesque sets and intense war scenes, and that's where Caro really had a field day. "Those sequences, I'm delighted of these she mentioned. They're really cute and epic — however you could still take kids. No blood is lose. It's not Game of Thrones."