50 Fun Facts About Mulan

Who provides the speaking voice of Mulan in the 1998 Disney film?

Lea Salonga was cast to speak and sing, but the directors did not buy her attempt at a deeper 'Ping' voice, so Wen was brought in to speak while Salonga sang.

Who sings Mulan's songs, including 'Reflection', in the 1998 film?

She had already been Jasmine's singing voice in Aladdin, and returned to sing Mulan in Mulan II.

Who voices Mushu, the tiny disgraced family guardian dragon?

Pesci and Dreyfuss were approached first; Michael Eisner suggested Murphy. A sixth song written for Mushu was dropped after Murphy came aboard.

BD Wong speaks Captain Li Shang, but who sings 'I'll Make a Man Out of You'?

Osmond had auditioned to be the speaking voice of Hercules; Jackie Chan voiced Shang in all three Chinese-language dubs.

Which action star voiced Li Shang in the Chinese-language versions of the 1998 film?

He also appeared in the Chinese promotional video for 'I'll Make a Man Out of You'.

What name does Mulan use when she poses as a male recruit?

In the 2020 remake she is 'Hua Jun'; her father in the animated film is Fa Zhou.

Who are the three fellow recruits who become Mulan's friends?

Harvey Fierstein voices Yao; James Hong is the pompous counsel Chi-Fu.

What is the name of the Hun leader in the 1998 film?

Miguel Ferrer voices him; Mushu finally fires him into a fireworks tower with a giant skyrocket.

How does Mulan wipe out most of the Hun army in the mountain pass?

She is wounded doing it, which is how Shang and the men discover she is a woman.

What is the name of the 'lucky' cricket that accompanies Mushu?

Veteran story artist Joe Grant created him and slipped sketches under the directors' door until they gave in; Little Brother is the family dog.

What gifts does the Emperor give Mulan at the end?

She turns down his offer to join the royal council and goes home to dinner with her family, and Shang.

Which pop star's first US single was 'Reflection' from the Mulan soundtrack?

The soundtrack is credited with launching her career; her self-titled debut followed in 1999.

Who wrote the songs for Mulan after Stephen Schwartz left the project?

Wilder was hired after a Disney executive heard his demo for a stage musical of Anne Rice's Cry to Heaven; Jerry Goldsmith wrote the score.

Mulan was the first of three features produced mainly at which animation outpost?

The Florida studio at Disney-MGM Studios had opened in 1989 to make shorts; Lilo & Stitch and Brother Bear followed.

How much did the 1998 Mulan gross worldwide?

It cost $90 million and was the year's seventh-highest-grossing film, though it opened second behind The X-Files.

Which of these did the 1998 film win?

It was only nominated for the Oscar and Golden Globe for its music.

What was the film's earliest concept, before it became the story we know?

A separate straight-to-video project called China Doll, about a Chinese girl rescued by a British prince, was also in development.

What was the crowd-simulation software developed to animate 2,000 Hun soldiers called?

Faux Plane was a separate tool used for the Great Wall and Forbidden City shots.

Where did the creative team travel in June 1994 for research?

They visited Beijing, Datong, Luoyang, Xi'an, Jiayuguan, Dunhuang and Guilin; the flags on the Great Wall inspired producer Pam Coats.

Which McDonald's promotion for Mulan was revived in 2017 because of a Rick and Morty episode?

Disney had spent only $30 million marketing the film, half of what Hercules got the year before.

Why did China delay and restrict Mulan's release there in 1998?

It was let in only after Chinese New Year and did poorly, hurt by piracy.

Who voices the Emperor of China in the 1998 film?

Soon-Tek Oh voices Mulan's father Fa Zhou and June Foray her grandmother, with Marni Nixon singing.

Which art style did the designers deliberately move toward for Mulan?

It was a reaction against the dense detail of The Lion King and The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Who plays Mulan in the 2020 live-action film?

She also dubbed her own role in Mandarin and sang a Mandarin version of 'Reflection' for the soundtrack.

Who directed the 2020 Mulan?

The New Zealander shot it in New Zealand and Asia between August and November 2018.

Which beloved character was cut from the 2020 remake because of his poor reception in China?

Shang was also split into two characters, Commander Tung and the recruit Chen Honghui.

How was the 2020 Mulan released in the US in September 2020?

The pandemic cancelled its US theatrical run; it made only $69.9 million in cinemas elsewhere against a $200 million budget.

Who plays the shape-shifting witch Xianniang in the 2020 film?

She turns into a hawk and takes an arrow meant for Mulan; Jet Li plays the Emperor.

Who are the invaders in the 2020 film, replacing the animated film's Huns?

Jason Scott Lee plays their leader Böri Khan; the Rourans were the real enemy in the original Ballad's Northern Wei setting.

Ming-Na Wen cameos in the 2020 remake in what role?

Donnie Yen plays Commander Tung, one of the two characters based on Li Shang.

What controversy arose from the 2020 film's end credits?

Thanks went to the Turpan public security bureau and local Party committees, amid the persecution of Uyghurs.

Which new single did the singer of the 1998 'Reflection' record for the 2020 film?

No songs from the animated film were sung in the remake, though 'Reflection' runs through the score.

For which two Oscars was the 2020 Mulan nominated?

It also received a BAFTA nod for special visual effects.

Which dynasty is the original Ballad of Mulan believed to come from?

The Northern Wei was ruled by the Xianbei, which is why some scholars think Mulan may not have been Han Chinese.

In the legend, how many years does Mulan serve in the army before her comrades learn she is a woman?

She goes home, changes back into women's clothes, and astonishes the men who fought beside her.

Where does the earliest surviving text of the Ballad of Mulan come from?

The 11th- or 12th-century anthology cites the lost 6th-century Musical Records of Old and New as its source.

Which playwright gave Mulan the surname Hua, the version that became the most popular?

Other sources call her Zhu or Wei; Hua pairs poetically with Mulan, which means 'lily magnolia'.

What does the name 'Mulan' literally mean?

Whether she was a real person is still unknown; she does not appear in the Northern Wei collection Exemplary Women.

Which 17th-century novel folded Mulan's story into a larger historical epic?

Chu Renhuo's book calls her family Wei; a later tradition sets her at the founding of the Tang.

What is the plot of the 2004 direct-to-video sequel?

Mushu, afraid of losing his guardian job if Mulan marries, tries to break up the engagement; Eddie Murphy did not return.

Who took over as Mushu's voice in Mulan II?

Frank Welker replaced Chris Sanders as the dog Little Brother; the sequel was released on December 28, 2004, to negative reviews.

The Emperor's counsel who tries to stop Shang's men from fighting is called what?

James Hong voices the mandarin, who is left off the Mulan II cast list.

Which two directors made the 1998 animated Mulan?

Both directors also voiced the fireworks palace attendants in the film.

Which actress was an early candidate to voice Mulan before Ming-Na Wen was cast?

Wen landed the role after the filmmakers heard her narration at the start of The Joy Luck Club.

Which composer scored the 1998 film after Rachel Portman withdrew during production?

Portman backed out after becoming pregnant; Goldsmith signed on after dropping out of another project.

Who voices the Hun chieftain Shan Yu in the 1998 film?

Takei voiced the First Ancestor and Soon-Tek Oh voiced Mulan's father Fa Zhou.

Where did the 1998 Mulan premiere on June 5, 1998?

Disney trimmed its marketing to $30 million after Hunchback and Hercules underperformed, half of what Hercules got.

Which martial arts star plays Commander Tung in the 2020 live-action Mulan?

Both Tung and the soldier Chen Honghui are based on Li Shang from the animated film.

Who plays the Emperor of China in the 2020 remake?

Tzi Ma plays Mulan's father Hua Zhou, and Jason Scott Lee plays the Rouran leader Böri Khan.

Which two-time Best Director Oscar winner was first approached to direct the 2020 remake?

Lee declined; the job went to New Zealander Niki Caro, and filming took place in New Zealand and China in 2018.