First trailer released for Disney live-action film 'Mulan'

The live-action film "Mulan" dropped its first trailer on Sunday. The film will greet audiences on March 27 next year.

Chinese actress Liu Yifei is in the leading role and the film features an all-Asian cast. Jet Li and Donnie Yen, two martial arts legends, play the Emperor and Commander Tung respectively, while actress Gong Li stars as the main villain, the witch Xian Lang. Mulan's lover Cheng Honghui is played by Yoson An, a Chinese-New Zealander.

Actress Yifei Liu arrives at the "Hancock" premiere in Los Angeles on June 30, 2008. Walt Disney Studios has cast the Chinese actress as the title character Mulan in the live-action epic from director Niki Caro. [Photo: IC]

People have expressed anticipation for the live-action remake of the 1998 animation, and praised Liu's performance after watching her fighting scenes in the film.

"Mulan" is inspired by an ancient Chinese story. It is about how a girl named Mulan disguised herself as a man to take her ailing father's place in the military, and returns home as a national heroine after winning the war. In Chinese culture, Mulan stands for courage, patriotism, filial piety and the huge potential in women.

Mulan is also the first female Asian character to be listed in the Disney princess collection.

(Story includes material sourced from CGTN)