Mulan Trailer Reactions: 5 Ups & 2 Downs

Downs

2. No General Shang

It is hard to imagine the live action Cinderella without Prince Charming or Aladdin without Jasmine - the list goes on - so when news broke that the live action Mulan would be excluding the character, General Shang, it came as a bit of a shock. As general of the Chinese Army, Shang eventually becomes Mulan's love interest.

No official reasoning has been given for Disney's decision to remove the character - he would hardly detract from the live action film's more serious take on the story. Instead, it seems Shang has been replaced with a character named, Chen Honghui, who will be played by Yoson An. Honghui's character description very much seems to mirror the arc of General Shang. The only difference seems to be that Honghui is a fellow army recruit.

It will be interesting to see why these changes were made. As subtle as they seem, changing the name of the character disrupts continuity between the animated and live actions versions and thus far Disney's live-action remakes seem set on continuing Disney's animated legacy.