Disney’s “Mulan” remake is facing scrutiny after its credits thanked the Turpan Municipal Bureau of Public Security, a bureau that has helped China’s communist government imprison Muslims in concentration camps.
Axios’ reporter Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian tweeted on Monday that the movie’s shout-out was “truly outrageous,” considering the bureau has been “deeply involved” in running camps in Xinjiang, a region in Northwest China.
The region is best known in recent years for being at the heart of China’s attacks against Uyghurs, a Turkic-speaking ethnic minority who mostly practice Islam. At least 1 million Uyghurs are held in state-run concentration camps, according to PBS.
Disney did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment on why “Mulan’s” credits thanked the bureau.
The camps have been used to beat and humiliate Uyghurs — including forcing some prisoners to eat pork, which is forbidden in Islam — according to multiple reports. At the same time, the Chinese government has been accused of running a “mass rape” program against Uyghur women by forcing them to sleep with men of Han descent.
On Monday morning, The Washington Post ran an opinion piece calling the film’s credits a “scandal.” Security forces in Turpan, a city in eastern Xinjiang, have played a key role in the state’s systematic oppression of Muslims, writer Isaac Stone Fish explained.
“Turpan has been directly implicated in these crimes,” Fish wrote. “In 2017, Communist Party officials in the city faced a problem. Like officials throughout the region, they had begun to round up Muslims and send them to concentration camps. But Muslim students from other parts of the country were returning home and asking officials about their parents. And so officials prepared a detailed question-and-answer guide. ‘They’re in a training school,’ officials were chillingly taught to reply. ‘They have very good conditions for studying and living there, and you have nothing to worry about.’ That answer couldn’t be further from the truth.”
Four other Chinese propaganda departments in Xinjiang are also thanked in “Mulan’s” credits, Fish added.
The film has also been criticized after star Yifei Liu supported Hong Kong police last year, who have been seen as repressive against pro-democracy protesters. Liu’s support sparked the #BoycottMulan campaign, with many Twitter users saying they won’t watch the movie due to her comments.
16 Disney Live-Action Remakes of Animated Hits in the Works (Photos)
Disney will be pumping out live-action versions of their animated classics for a long time time to come. Here's a list of titles in the works, including the release date of the original.
"Jungle Cruise"
Okay, okay, "Jungle Cruise" might not count as live-action film based on a previously animated classic, but it is based on a ride at Disneyland, so we're going to include it. Plus, we'll take any chance to talk about Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt in the same sentence. It will hit theaters July 24, 2020.
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"The Little Mermaid" So now we're getting into films that are in some stage of development but haven't necessarily been slated for release. After all, Disney has so many untitled films slated, it's hard to count. But a live-action version of "The Little Mermaid" has been long discussed, as it is arguably one of the most popular and profitable movies in Disney's vault. Rob Marshall is on board direct, with Halle Bailey set to star as Ariel and Melissa McCarthy as Ursula.
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"Pinocchio"
"Pinocchio" is also in the works, with Tom Hanks playing Geppetto.
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"Snow White" Forget her sister -- the original baddest chick in the Disney animated kingdom is coming back for her own standalone film. It was announced at the end of October 2016.
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"The Jungle Book 2" This is a no-brainer follow-up to Favreau's hit from spring 2016, based on the animated classic released in 1967.
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"Snow White" Forget her sister -- the original baddest chick in the Disney animated kingdom is coming back for her own standalone film. It was announced at the end of October 2016.
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"Aladdin"
"Hercules"
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"Peter Pan" Neverland will get a practical set if Disney has its way updating the 1953 animated film.
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"James and the Giant Peach" In one of the more interesting adaptations, this beloved Roald Dahl book became a quirky claymation hit for Disney in 1996 with director Henry Selick. Heavy dramatist director Sam Mendes was attached to take a stab at it, but he has since dropped out.
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"Hunchback"
In early 2019, a live-action film based on 1996's "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" was announced. Tony-winning playwright David Henry Hwang was tapped to pen the script, with Alan Menken and Stephen Schwartz handling the music.
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"Tinker Bell"
This movie has also been in the works for quite some time, with Reese Witherspoon attached as the cute little fairy from "Peter Pan."
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"Bambi"
In January 2020, Disney hired Geneva Robertson-Dworet (“Captain Marvel") and Lindsey Beer (“Sierra Burgess Is a Loser”) to write the script for the live-action remake of the 1942 animated classic.
"Oliver Twist" While Disney never formally made a direct animated take on Charles Dickens' beloved orphan, the studio did release the adorable 1988 "Oliver and Company," inspired by Dickens' tale but told with animals. The studio also made a small-screen live-action version in 1997 with Richard Dreyfuss.
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"Lilo & Stitch"
This project was announced in October 2018 with Mike Van Waes attached to pen the script. Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich of Rideback are producing. In November of last year, it was announced that Jon M. Chu was in early talks to direct.
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"The Lion King" Sequel
In September, it was announced that Barry Jenkins would direct the follow-up to Jon Favreau's 2019 hit. The logline is being kept under wraps, but Deadline reported that the film will explore the mythology of the other characters in Pride Rock, including Mufasa’s origin story.
No release date for the next film has been set, and it’s unclear when production would begin. No cast has been set either.
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The studio is raiding its vault to remake classics including ”The Little Mermaid“
Disney will be pumping out live-action versions of their animated classics for a long time time to come. Here's a list of titles in the works, including the release date of the original.