Next year’s live-action reboot of Disney’s Mulan is facing a Chinese boycott after its star, the actor Liu Yifei, expressed her support for the Hong Kong police amid the country’s protests.
Posting to the Chinese social media platform Weibo, Liu republished an image from The People’s Daily that read “I support the Hong Kong police; you can beat me up now” in Chinese, and then “What a shame for Hong Kong” below in English.
She also posted a message reading: “I also support the Hong Kong police”, alongside a heart and strong-arm emoji.
As a result of the tweets, #BoycottMulan began trending on Weibo and Twitter, with users posting messages that included: “#BoycottMulan because while these people in Hong Kong are fighting for their rights while being brutalised by their own police, Liu Yifei is sitting her happy ass down in the US enjoying the rights those people don’t have while supporting the police brutality from afar.”
Another wrote: “I was happy when @DisneyStudios announce that they are making a new Mulanmovie [sic]. She was my childhood hero. It is disappointed [sic] to see the actress who plays her does not empathise with the protesters in HK. They are fighting for their homeland like Mulan. #BoycottMulan”
“To whom it may concern,” began another. “Do not watch the live-action Mulanmovie. Lead actress Liu Yifei supports the police brutality currently being seen in Hong Kong. She spits in the face of democracy, freedom, and human rights.”
The Chinese police have been accused of using excessive force against largely peaceful protestors in recent weeks, more than two months after protesters began demanding greater personal autonomy in the country and a number of government reforms. This week Chinese officials condemned protesters as no different to “terrorists”.
