No Mushu in Disney’s Mulan 2020? Last updated on December 14 2019 by Cooper Smith

Disney’s next live action remake, Mulan will be based on the hit 1998 animated classic and is bound to make millions at the box office. From the trailers, it is seeming to be a more realistic and serious version of the story.

But the problem with that is it leads to cutting out parts of the film that tons of fans absolutely adore. Some peoples’ favourite part of the movie were the songs and Mushu. And now there is something Mulan fans are a little ticked off at. Can you guess what? Well, Disney is cutting Mushu from the new film. He was the loveable guardian dragon from the original, voiced by Eddy Murphy, and he will not be making an appearance.

This is disappointing to many, but so it goes with every live action remake. People were upset with Aladdin 2019’s weird CGI version of the Genie, but it killed at the box office. Aladdin racked up over a billion dollars worldwide. Others were annoyed at The Lion King 2019 being called “live action” when it was all CGI, but it turned out to be one of the highest-grossing “animated” movies of all time. Whatever problems fans have with the movie, it seems audiences crave the feeling of nostalgia so much they do not care what changes are made or flaws it has and will go to the theatre.

It seems Disney is abandoning Mushu and his jokes for a more serious tone with the new Mulan. This decision, while controversial, is not necessarily a bad thing. After all, it could make the remake feel new and fresh while still feeling traditional. Mushu is getting replaced with a guardian phoenix that you can see briefly in the new trailers. That might be able to fill in at least some of the Mushu-sized hole in fans’ chests.

But there is something else that’s being cut. Disney is also taking away the music from the film. We will hear no new versions of the hit songs such as, “Reflection,” “I’ll Make a Man Out of You,” “A Girl Worth Fighting For,” or “You’ll Bring Honor to Us All.” These were and still are hugely popular, but the new film is not a musical, unfortunately.

However, the smart move for Disney if they’re not keeping these songs is to at least have some part of them still in the movie; possibly instrumentals of them during the points in the story in which they would have been sung. While Mulan is staring at her reflection, we could get the tune in the background of the matching song. When she is training at the military camp, we could get a hint of “I’ll Make a Man out of You.” That could still bring out nostalgia for fans while letting the film stay serious and realistic.

But Disney’s not just taking away parts from the movie, they are adding things as well. The Huns will be fighting alongside a new female villain called Xian Lang. She’s supposed to be a magical witch, and in the newest trailer she even talks with Mulan. Also, 2020’s Mulan will feature a new member of her family; Mulan’s getting a sister. Mulan’s father says in the new trailer, “I’m blessed with two daughters.”

We are certainly interested to see how all these new changes, like taking away Mushu and the music, or adding a witch and a sister, affects the movie. And if fans will care all that much either way. Whatever the case, we’re sure it’ll do pretty well money-wise. Farewell, Mushu.