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Mulan live-action remake now free for Disney Plus subscribers

Finally, you can watch Mulan without the additional paywall.

Katie Teague Writer II
Katie is a writer covering all things how-to at CNET, with a focus on Social Security and notable events. When she's not writing, she enjoys playing in golf scrambles, practicing yoga and spending time on the lake.
Expertise Personal Finance: Social Security and taxes
Mark Serrels Editorial Director
Mark Serrels is an award-winning Senior Editorial Director focused on all things culture. He covers TV, movies, anime, video games and whatever weird things are happening on the internet. He especially likes to write about the hardships of being a parent in the age of memes, Minecraft and Fortnite. Definitely don't follow him on Twitter.
Katie Teague
Mark Serrels
2 min read
mulan-2020-first-look

You can now rent Mulan on Disney Plus.

Walt Disney Studios

Disney's live-action remake of the 1998 animated film Mulan skipped a theatrical release in the US, being made available to stream on Disney Plus. Initially  Disney 's Mulan remake cost you an extra $30 on top of your new or existing subscription, but that period is almost over. 

As of today, Dec. 4, Mulan is free to all Disney Plus subscribers. 

Disney's live-action remake is based on the Chinese legend of Hua Mulan and follows a young woman in China who poses as a man to take the place of her ailing father in the war against the Huns. In the live-action film, helmed by director Niki Caro, Yifei Liu plays the title role. Unlike the G-rated animated classic, Mulan for 2020 is rated PG-13 for sequences of violence and is a more realistic telling of her epic journey (no Mushu or songs in this film). Critics have described the new film as exciting, vibrant and emotional.

On Dec. 4, Mulan is just like anything else on Disney Plus

Today, Dec. 4, Mulan will be released to all Disney Plus subscribers to watch at no additional charge. 

You won't have to go through any additional paywall. All that's required is to purchase a Disney Plus subscription and watch.

Is Mulan worth watching?

Even here at CNET, we're mixed. In our review, we called it "a beautiful resolution to the struggle between balancing personal needs with a desire to serve family." But Executive Editor Roger Cheng saw huge problems with the movie in the way it mimicked elements of other major Disney franchises, like Star Wars and Avengers. Those who hadn't seen the original animated version enjoyed it more.

But above and beyond the quality of the movie, there were Mulan boycotts when it was initially released this year. These boycotts were a result of the treatment of Uyghur Muslims in China's Xinjiang region -- where some of the film was shot -- and China's crackdown of freedoms in Hong Kong.
You can find context on those boycotts here.

Can I download Mulan to watch offline?

Disney Plus currently lets you download all of its shows and movies to watch offline. Mulan has all the same product features that other titles on Disney Plus do, so it's also available for download.