After a year-long search, Disney has found the star for its upcoming live-action Mulan film! Chinese actress Liu Yifei (aka Crystal Liu) will be portraying the fan-favorite character, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
From the HR article:
A team of casting directors visited five continents and saw nearly 1,000 candidates for the role, which requires credible martial arts skills, the ability to speak English and the most ineffable requirement of all: star quality. In deference to cultural accuracy, the studio focused on locating an ethnically Chinese young woman to play Hua Mulan, who disguised herself as a man to take her father’s army conscription in fifth-century China.
Liu seems to have what it takes to pull this role off, she’s trained in martial arts and has appeared in 2008’s The Forbidden Kingdom, alongside Jackie Chan and Jet Li. She’s fluent in English as well, and carries that charming star-power in China with hit TV series and films.
Niki Caro is directing Disney’s live-action Mulan, which is aiming for a 2019 release. No word yet on if Agents of SHIELD‘s Ming-Na Wen will make a guest appearance as a highly skilled badass agent for the Emperor.