Meet The Actress Who Is Playing Mulan In Disney’s Live-Action Adaptation

Disney is getting down to business with a new “Mulan.” The company just announced Chinese actress Liu Yifei, also known as Crystal Liu, will play the leading role in the live-action version of the beloved story, People.com reported.

“Mulan” is the story of a powerful young Chinese woman who fought against the Huns in place of her father. According to a post on the Disney blog Oh My Disney, “The live-action film will be inspired by both the legendary ballad and the Disney animated classic.”

Liu, 30, is a popular actress in China, where she’s nicknamed the “Fairy Sister.” She’s fluent in English and even lived in Queens, New York City, as a kid, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Liu has 24 credits on IMDb at the moment, mostly for Chinese productions. You may have heard about 2017’s “The Chinese Widow,” in which she starred alongside Emile Hirsch. She also had a role in 2014’s “Outcast,” which stars Nicolas Cage and Hayden Christensen, and 2008’s “The Forbidden Kingdom,” starring Jackie Chan and Jet Li.

According to IMDb, we should plan on heading to the theaters to see “Mulan” in 2019. That’s plenty of time to catch up on 1998’s animated version and jam to Christina Aguilera’s song “Reflection” from the soundtrack!

The cherry on top of this great news? “Mulan” is just one of several classic Disney movies getting the live-action treatment. A live-action “The Lion King” remake in the works starring Beyoncé as Nala, Donald Glover as the adult Simba and James Earl Jones reprising his role as Mufasa. Tim Burton will direct a live-action version of “Dumbo” that includes stars like Danny DeVito and Colin Farrell in the cast. And none other than Emma Stone is switching up her hair color for “Cruella,” a live-action feature about the “101 Dalmations” villain. Check out the full list of live-action Disney flicks in the works.