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WIRE Buzz: Disney+ drops first Mulan promo; The One and Only Ivan clip; New Mutants IMAX
The Mouse House removed all doubt over Mulan's streaming rollout today with the first Disney+ promo for director Niki Caro's live-action remake of the 1998 original. The film will become available to platform subscribers on Friday, Sep. 4 for a "Premier Access" fee of $29.99. As we reported last week, the hefty sum is a one-off that nets users indefinite access to the movie (so long as they remain Disney+ subscribers).
Depending on how successful this model proves to be, Disney may decide to skip more theatrical releases amid the coronavirus pandemic, which delayed Mulan's late March debut in the first place. It was pushed twice before it became clear that U.S. theaters would not be reopened in a wider way anytime soon.
Written by Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, Lauren Hynek, and Elizabeth Martin, Mulan stars Liu Yifei as a young woman who pretends to be a man in order to take her ailing father's place in the Imperial Chinese Army. Donnie Yen, Jason Scott Lee, Yoson An, Gong Li, and Jet Li co-star.
Animation fans have been watching word of the live action remake closely, as it does not feature musical numbers or the wise-cracking dragon Mushu (voiced by Eddie Murphy in the '98 animated version). However, it should be noted that the glaring lack of Mush did stem from a place of reverence for Chinese history and culture.
"We all love Mushu," producer Jason Reed said earlier this year. "But it turns out that that maybe isn't the most culturally appropriate way to represent a dragon in Chinese culture. So we are not having Mushu ... We've worked really closely with a lot of Chinese partners and with the Chinese government and with cultural consultants and researchers. We have gone to great pains to make sure that we show due deference."
It's time to monkey around with some character posters and a brand-new clip for another Disney+ release: The One and Only Ivan. Based on the book by K. A. Applegate, the family-friendly flick is centered around the titular Ivan (Sam Rockwell), a gorilla that's been the center attraction of a mall-based circus (run by Bryan Cranston's Mack) for most of his life. When a young elephant (Brooklynn Prince) joins the show, Ivan begins to remember his past and plans a return to the wild.
The big ape also shows an impressive talent for drawing, which is the focus of the clip below:
The character posters highlight the movie's impressive voice cast, which (aside from Rockwell and Prince) includes: Angelina Jolie, Chaka Khan, Helen Mirren, and Danny DeVito.
Ramón Rodríguez and Ariana Greenblatt round out the core human characters.
Adapted for the screen by Mike White and directed by Thea Sharrock, The One and Only Ivan hits Disney+ on Friday, Aug. 28.
With Disney/20th Century Studios still planning to release The New Mutants into U.S. theaters on Aug. 28, IMAX has unveiled some exclusive artwork for Josh Boone's X-Men film. The movie, which was delayed long before COVID-19 hit the scene, co-stars Maisie Williams, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Heaton, Blu Hunt, and Henry Zaga as a group of young mutants trying to control their powers and escape from a sinister medical facility. Alice Braga plays the role of their caretaker, Cecilia Reyes.
If it actually does open by the end of the month, it'll mark the first "major" film release since the pandemic shuttered theaters across the country several months ago.
Check out the stormy IMAX poster below:
Simon Kinberg, Karen Rosenfelt, Lauren Shuler Donner, Stan Lee, and Michele Imperato Stabile are all credited as executive producers. Boone co-wrote the screenplay with Knate Lee.
