Mulan is the latest Disney live-action reboot to be announced, and already rumors are starting to swirl about the film. Mulan, which was originally a 1998 DIsney animated film about a young girl, Fa Mulan, who pretends to be a boy in order to join the army and save her father from being conscripted in the draft, is rumored to begin production this year already.
That news is a little surprising, given the amount of other Disney live-action remakes that have already been announced and also need to begin production- reboots of Dumbo, Pinocchio and 101 Dalmations, as well as The Jungle Book and Beauty and the Beast, which are already in production. But according to Stuff, the production will, in fact, start this year. Which could potentially point to a 2017 release date, most likely (but perhaps 2018).
Already, Mulan is swamped with controversy. The film was recently protested by those who don't want Mulan to be cast with a white actress- even though the part hasn't been cast as a white actress, and there have been no casting reports at all that point to a white actress landing the part. However, due to previous instances where white actors have claimed parts traditionally played by other ethnicities- Tiger Lily in the upcoming Pan or the lead in the Ghost in the Shell movie reboot- many fans think the same will happen with Mulan.
However, according to Fusion, their number one pick for the part of Mulan would be Fresh Off the Boat's Constance Wu. Wu's received a ton of acclaim for her role as the mother in Fresh Off the Boat, however there seems to be one major caveat to her casting- that Mulan is supposed to be a reasonably young woman (16 years old in the official Disney canon) while Wu is 33 years old. She does play the mom in Fresh Off the Boat, after all.
What do you think? Is Wu the #1 pick, or should Disney find a slightly younger actress?
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