People are boycotting Disney’s Mulan after actress Liu Yifei shares controversial post
21 August 2019, 17:31
Mulan is back and making a 2020 return as a live-action movie.
It’s been over two decades since Mulan was originally released by Disney as an animated musical and the much-loved film is set to return next year as a live-action movie, starring Chinese-American actress Liu Yifei.
But the actress has recently come under fire for social media posts which seem to show support for the Hong Kong police with a post on Chinese social media platform Weibo.
Thousands of people in Hong Kong are currently involved in pro-democracy protests against mainland China and some have accused the police of being too excessive in their force against protesters, according to CNN.
READ MORE: Mulan: Will Mushu, Shang and the original songs be in the live-action Disney film?
Liu - who was born in China but is now a naturalised US citizen - has upset some fans of the film for a post that seems to show her support for the police over the protesters.
"I support the Hong Kong police. You can all attack me now. What a shame for Hong Kong," she wrote in a post on Weibo.
Afterwards, the hashtag #BoycottMulan started trending on Twitter, which is blocked in China due to the country’s internet censorship laws. People online have since been calling out Liu for supporting police brutality, saying it feels especially out of place considering she’s an American citizen.
“You play the role of Mulan but support police brutality? How ironic,” one person tweeted.
Another wrote: “Being an American Chinese [citizen] not using your freedom well to understand facts, how pathetic. Totally destroying the character Mulan.”
You play the role of Mulan but support police brutality? How ironic. #BoycottMulan
— Yna (@itsynalol) August 17, 2019
being an american chinese not using your freedom well to understand facts, how pathetic. Totally destroying the character Mulan.#BoycottMulan pic.twitter.com/gyPj8SfLnn
— Regina Cheung (@regina329) August 18, 2019
Disney’s Mulan actress, Liu Yifei, supports police brutality and oppression in Hong Kong.
— Jun Lee (@BBABYDOLL2000) August 16, 2019
Liu is a naturalized American citizen. it must be nice. meanwhile she pisses on people fighting for democracy.
retweet please. HK doesn’t get enough support. #BoycottMulan @Disney pic.twitter.com/lBoQv7BlsZ
“Disney’s Mulan actress, Liu Yifei, supports police brutality and oppression in Hong Kong. Liu is a naturalized American citizen. it must be nice. meanwhile she pisses on people fighting for democracy,” wrote another.
Neither Disney nor Liu have yet to respond to the backlash.
The original story of Mulan, which the films are based on, centres on the legend of Hua Mulan, a Chinese warrior woman who lived during the Northern and Southern dynasties between 420 and 589 CE.
The 2020 film is set to stay closer to the original story than the 1998 animated version and might not feature the characters of Mushu or Shang, who appeared in the original. It’s also currently not set to be a musical, but the songs from the animated movie might feature in the film as instrumental tracks.
