'Mulan' becomes Disney's first PG-13 live-action remake

The upcoming epic fantasy war drama film "Mulan" has become Disney's first live-action remake of animated classics to be given a PG-13 rating in the United States.

"Mulan" has received a PG-13 rating from the Motion Picture Association of America due to "sequences of violence," the Hollywood Reporter magazine reported on Tuesday, noting that trailers have depicted the film as more of a fantasy war epic than a musical.

The Hollywood Reporter said, "Yet with the rating signifying a slightly more grown-up tale of the Chinese legend, modern times have proved that PG-13 rated features can still play well for families."

"Mulan" comes after the success of some previous Disney remakes, such as 2015's "Cinderella," 2017's "Beauty and the Beast" and 2019's "Aladdin."

"Mulan" is also the first title from Disney's live action studio to receive PG-13 since 2017's fantasy film "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales."

Based on the legend of an ancient Chinese woman warrior, Hua Mulan, the film is a live action adaptation of Disney's 1998 animated film of the same name. The heroine, according to legend, lived in a tumultuous era of Chinese history more than 1,400 years ago. She disguised herself as a man so that she could serve in the army in place of her aged father and fight for the country.

Directed by Niki Caro, the film stars Liu Yifei as the title role following a year-long global casting, with Gong Li as a powerful and dangerous witch, Donnie Yen as an army commander, and Jet Li as the emperor of China.

The new version is set to hit US theaters next month.