No." Though the director shared that Mushu was removed to allow Mulan to better enhance her relationships with her fellow soldiers, his absence may have also been more about not offending viewers, who found Mushu to be insensitive in the 1998 animated feature.
The new film's director explained that a new cast of comrades for the film's protagonist felt more realistic. Mushu may have also been removed due to criticism of the 1998 animated film's portrayal of the talking dragon, according to the film's producer.
Unlike the animated film, the live-action story opens with Mulan's father, Hua Zhou, narrating the story of his legendary daughter. The animated film opens from the villain's perspective as he invades China through the Great Wall. The landmark isn't featured in the new Disney film.
Almost as soon as the film arrived on Disney+, social media users noticed that, nine minutes into the film's 10-minute end credits, the “Mulan” filmmakers had thanked eight government entities in Xinjiang, the region in China where Uighur Muslims have been detained in mass internment camps.
A clause in Eddie Murphy's contract for doing Shrek 2 (2004) forbade him from reprising the role of Mushu in this film, therefore having his other voice actor Mark Moseley (a man best known for filling in for Murphy's characters like Mushu and Donkey in their TV and Video Game appearances) fill in for this film.
Mulan is the Worst Disney Live-Action Remake So Far
Why did Mulan 2 get negative reviews?
The biggest issue is this film features way less action than it's predecessor and way less Mulan (she practically disappears in the middle of the film). Mulan's bickering with Shang is also very badly written.
Although Mushu and the phoenix are both guardians of the ancestors, and both are stone statues brought to life for Mulan's protection, the phoenix is never a true replacement for Mushu. Mulan and the phoenix never really interact, compared with Mushu's constant involvement in the animated film.
The issue was that Mulan was partially filmed in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, in close proximity to detention camps for Uighur Muslims, and Disney gave credit to “publicity department of CPC Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomy Region Committee” among other entities.
However, the character was cut from Disney's live-action remake. The producer Jason Reed cited the #MeToo movement as the reason. Cutting Li Shang, a character who means a lot to LGBTQ Disney fans around the world, was a huge missed opportunity for Disney.
Chinese critics, both at home and abroad, said they were disappointed with the film's inaccurate and stereotypical portrayals of Chinese history and the main character, infused with nationalist tropes. Others were not as bothered.
The live-action “Mulan” takes place during the Northern Wei Dynasty in 4th to 6th century AD ,although not all costume or set design is historically accurate to this time period.
Mulan star Liu Yifei's comments supporting Hong Kong police sparked criticism of the film, which quickly led to a call for boycotts among Hong Kong pro-democracy protestors, as well as Thai and Taiwanese activists, among others.
Believed to have been written out of the film due to being "deemed culturally inaccurate and racist", some academics and culture critics defended Disney's decision to remove Mushu, describing it as their attempt "to represent Chinese culture and history in a more authentic manner".
Mushu was once a guardian spirit of Mulan's family, but he has been demoted to the unappreciated position of an incense burner and gong-ringer for the deceased Fa ancestors ever since he failed to protect a family member, a soldier named Fa Deng, resulting in the soldier's demise by decapitation.
Although the live-action movie of Mulan was a flop, at least the cartoon was one of the two Mulan movies that was a hit. The cartoon Mulan on IMDb got a star rating of 7.6, and the live-action received a star rating of only 5.4.
Ahead of “Mulan's” Disney+ premiere last week in the U.S., #BoycottMulan trended on social media as activists blasted its Chinese American star Yifei Liu (a.k.a. Crystal Liu) for siding with Hong Kong police over pro-democracy protesters last year during a crackdown on demonstrations.
The boycott centers on two Chinese issues: The treatment of Uyghur Muslims in China's Xinjiang region -- where some of the film was shot -- and China's crackdown of freedoms in Hong Kong.
The Walt Disney Company owns 43 percent of the resort; the majority 57 percent is held by Shanghai Shendi Group, a joint venture of three companies owned by the Shanghai government.
"Written in Stone" is a song that was written for Disney's 1998 animated film Mulan, but was cut from the film when its composer Stephen Schwartz left the project.
98° fans, however, will be disappointed to know that there is no new version of their "True to Your Heart." Though not mentioned by Caro in her interviews, another reason that it was decided to cut the songs is to sidestep the more problematic elements of the original soundtrack of Mulan.
Though the director shared that Mushu was removed to allow Mulan to better enhance her relationships with her fellow soldiers, his absence may have also been more about not offending viewers, who found Mushu to be insensitive in the 1998 animated feature.
Mushu, the wise-cracking sidekick dragon voiced by Eddie Murphy, and Li Shang, the captain of the Imperial Army and Mulan's mentor, voiced by B.D. Wong. Among those who love the original, there are sure to be some questions as to why these seemingly pivotal characters were removed.
For better use, the animators shrunk Mushu to a smaller size. Around the time when the music of the film was to be created, the songwriters had written a piece for Mushu for him to sing to assure Mulan that he'll be there to help her.
