The Boycott and Backlash Associated with Disney’s New Live-Action Mulan -

By Noelia Veras

Disney recently released a live-action version of the beloved film Mulan on September 4. However, the reenvisioned Disney classic film has been the subject of several criticisms amid its release, largely in part due to the unsolicited political statements of lead actress Liu Yifei, who has publicly spoken out in support of groups involved in the mass genocide of Muslims in China.

In light of the pandemic, the film has been made available on the corporation’s streaming site Disney+, for an additional fee of $30. The film remains true to the storyline of the 1998 Disney film by the same name, of a woman joining a war in the place of her father while finding herself in the process. As far as the film goes, people are not too outraged by any of the content, but rather by the circumstances surrounding the film’s production and cast.

The first controversy occurred before the film’s release resulting from Hong Kong’s recent controversial political policies. According to Time magazine, pro-democracy protests have been occurring since last March due to a bill that was introduced allowing criminal extraditions to mainland China. The article also mentions that Hong Kong police have been condemned by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and Amnesty International for using excessive force on protestors.

The controversy, addressed by Time, was that Yifei supported the Hong Kong police amid the serious issues that people have had with its tactics in dismantling protests.

Disney received even more backlash not from the content of the film, but surprisingly enough, because of the film’s credits.

“Filmmakers had thanked eight government entities in Xinjiang, the region in China where Uighur Muslims have been detained in mass internment camps,” The New York Times reported.

This led to significant public backlash and boycotting of the film. People are not only appalled because of the credits but because of the fact that this film took place in these locations that are known for violations of human rights. CFO of Disney, Christine McCarthy, claims the film was hardly even shot in China.

“Let me just put something into context,” McCarthy said. “The real facts are that ‘Mulan’ was primarily shot — almost in entirety — in New Zealand.”

Ultimately, the film has not been well-received in China or in the United States the way Disney anticipated it would be prior to release. The cause of this can be attributed to the controversy but in actuality, it is far more complex.

“There are box office issues, the politics in both Washington and Beijing and Disney trying to please two masters, ” said Stanley Rosen, a professor of political science at the University of Southern California and Chinese cinema expert according to The Star. “This is such a multifaceted story.”

Another reason for the film’s poor performance is varying expectations from viewers, according to film critic and Beijing Academy professor, Shi Wenxue in an interview with Mashable.

“It also blended conventional settings of traditional Western fairy tales incompatible with Chinese historical stories,” he said. “Disney failed to do enough research on non-Western elements and stories. That led to many silly mistakes in the movie.”