Disney’s ‘Mulan’ flops at box office following human rights-related protests

The emergence of several controversies surrounding Disney’s live-action rendition of the animated classic Mulan hampered the movie’s performance upon its online release in September 2020. Lead actress Liu Yifei’s stance on pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, the discovery that segments of the film were filmed at internment camps in Xinjiang, and Disney’s compliance with Chinese censorship demands all incited calls to boycott the $200 million production. The boycott, in addition to strict COVID-19 limitations on the film’s theatrical release, resulted in disappointing revenue totals for the projected blockbuster hit. 

Key Players

Liu Yifei, also known as Crystal Liu, is a Chinese actress and model best known for her roles in action films The Forbidden Kingdom and The Assassins before portraying the titular character Fa Mulan in Disney’s 2020 live-action remake of Mulan.

The Milk Tea Alliance is a pro-democracy activist group comprising protesters from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Thailand.

Further Details

Liu Yifei first sparked criticism in 2019 by voicing her support for the Hong Kong police amid pro-democracy protests over a proposed bill that would allow for the extradition of criminal suspects in Hong Kong to mainland China. The star’s post on Chinese social media site Weibo, translated to English, reads, “I also support Hong Kong police. You can beat me up now,” The Guardian reports. Her statement provoked backlash from the Milk Tea Alliance and others critical of the use of excessive force by Hong Kong police against protesters, who flooded online platforms with calls to #BoycottMulan. This would not be the first time a U.S. entertainment venture saw its Chinese prospects compromised by a political statement, as an NBA executive faced repercussions earlier in 2019 for tweeting out in favor of the Hong Kong protesters. 

Anti-Mulan sentiments escalated further after the film’s release Sept. 4, when viewers spotted post-movie credits thanking public security and tourism bureaus in Xinjiang province, a region where China’s government has reportedly confined 1 million to 2 million Uighur Muslims in internment camps, according to Axios. The region had previously been blacklisted from U.S. economic trade by the Trump administration for human rights violations. 

Amid widespread criticism online, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) wrote a letter to Disney CEO Bob Chapek on Sept. 9, censuring the company’s decisions. 

“Disney gives ‘special thanks’ to the Turpan Public Security Bureau—the very same bureau responsible for administering the concentration camps in the Turpan jurisdiction. Disney also chose to give ‘special thanks’ to several CCP (Chinese Communist Party) propaganda organs, including the Xinjiang Communist Party’s publicity department,” Hawley wrote in the letter. “These agencies are tasked with spreading disinformation about the atrocities in Xinjiang in order to shield Beijing from accountability. Disney’s whitewashing of the ongoing Uighur genocide is contrary to all of your company’s supposed principles.” 

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and other senators and members of Congress penned another letter to Chapek, demanding a detailed account of Disney’s cooperation with the Chinese government. 

In response to the allegations, Disney CFO Christine McCarthy commented at a Sept. 10 media conference that “the real facts are that Mulan was primarily shot — almost in entirety — in New Zealand. In an effort to accurately depict some of the unique landscape and geography of the country of China for this period drama, we filmed scenery in 20 different locations in China. … In order to film in China, you have to be granted permission. That permission comes from the central government.”

Disney and other American media giants are finding themselves in the precarious position of balancing ethical concerns and artistic integrity with an ever-growing need to appeal to the Chinese entertainment market, which was projected to surpass that of the United States in 2020, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Movies like Mulan and the 2016 box office flop The Great Wall represent concerted efforts from Hollywood to satisfy censorship demands from the Chinese government in order to access audiences overseas. A report by PEN America warned of how China’s effort to influence U.S. entertainment poses a threat to Free Speech: “While individual compromises may seem minor or worthwhile in exchange for the opportunity to engage with China’s population, the collective global implications of playing by Beijing’s rules need to be recognized and understood before acquiescence to Chinese censorship becomes a new normal in countries that have prided themselves for their staunch free speech protections.”

Although ample funding exists for U.S.-made movies seeking blockbuster status in China, representation of East Asian culture in these films continues to appear heavy handed and contrived, according to University of California, Berkeley film and media scholar Jane Hu. As she wrote for The New Yorker, “The film is, put crudely, an Americanized celebration of Chinese nationalism, on a two-hundred-million-dollar budget.” 

Outcome 

Mulan underperforms at home and abroad

On Sept. 4, 2020, Mulan was made available on Disney’s streaming platform, Disney+, for an additional premium rental fee of $30, in lieu of widespread theatrical release. The film reportedly grossed between $60 million and $90 million in the United States within the first 12 days of its online release, paling in comparison to its budget. In China, the film took in $23.2 million on its opening weekend, with a sharp 72% decline the following weekend, according to Yahoo Entertainment. 

Disney yet to comment on Mulan controversy

Aside from the comments made by CFO Christine McCarthy, as of Oct. 19, 2020, Disney has yet to respond to letters from U.S. government officials or to make a public statement regarding Mulan’s ties to ongoing human rights violations in Xinjiang.