'Mulan' Director Niki Caro Shares Why They Decided Not To Include Mushu In Live Action Movie

Niki Caro is opening up more about the live action version of Mulan, which is set to premiere this week on Disney+, particularly about why Mushu isn’t in it.

The director, alongside star Yifei Liu, explained that why the dragon isn’t featured in the new movie, he is represented in several ways.

“We were very inspired about what Mushu brought to the animation which was humor and levity,” she says. “The challenge was to bring that to Mulan’s real relationships with her fellow soldiers.”

Niki continued, “Mushu, beloved as that character is in the animation, was Mulan’s confidante, and part of bringing it to live action is to commit to the realism of her journey. And she had to make those relationships with her fellow soldiers.”

Previously, producer Jason Reed shared that the creative team had a lot of conversations about including the popular animated animal.

This other character from the animated version won’t be appearing in the live action film either.