The live-action Mulan film is releasing on Disney Plus for a premium fee in some countries – but what about in the UK? The answer is somehow still a mystery, even though the film's September 4 release on the US version of the streaming service is just over two weeks away.
As theaters reopen in the UK ahead of Tenet's release next week, you can now book advance tickets for Christopher Nolan's new movie and the likes of The New Mutants on the Odeon website. You cannot book tickets for Mulan, however. We also couldn't find a listing page for Mulan on the Cineworld website, another big UK cinema chain.
You can order Mulan on Disney Plus here
When the Odeon Help Twitter page was asked about Mulan on August 13, the response said "I'm afraid nothing has been confirmed in regards to Mulan yet". It's also notable that while Disney Plus in the US has promoted Mulan's release on the streamer, the UK Twitter feed has not.
It's also curious that while you can now pre-order Mulan in the US from within the streaming service, via the listing page below, there is no UK equivalent yet.
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So, what's going on? Below, we'll talk you through what we know about it, but unfortunately we don't have any conclusive answers yet.
Mulan on Disney Plus UK: what do we know so far?
The answer is: nothing specific. This has happened very fast.
On August 4, Disney's Bob Chapek confirmed the move to release Mulan on Disney Plus for an additional $29.99 (with regional variations on that pricing), alongside a theatrical release. While he was specific about some territories that'll get the film, he was not specific about the UK or European countries in general.
"We are announcing today that, in most Disney+ markets – including the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and a number of countries in Western Europe – we will be offering Disney+ subscribers the epic adventure Mulan on Disney+ on a Premier Access-basis beginning September 4. The price point will be $29.99 in the U.S., and will vary slightly in other countries."
That's from Disney's own transcript of the earnings call where this was announced.
That same week, we reached out to Disney Plus for official comment on a possible UK release. The response directed us back to Chapek's remarks, and the fact that there were no more specifics at that point beyond the Western Europe remark.
A BBC report around the same time, though, mentioned that the UK Cinema Association understood a similar release was happening over here to the US, a decision it labelled "disappointing". As of yet, Disney UK doesn't appear to have made its plans public on the matter. Mulan isn't even mentioned in the movies section of Disney's own UK website, while future movies like Black Widow and Soul are.
We've now reached out again to Disney Plus UK to see if there is any new information on Mulan's release in the UK, and we'll update this page if we find out more.
What might happen next?
Disney Plus UK is slower than the US on certain things – hence we can't watch Pixar's Onward over here yet, and Frozen 2 released later here than it did over there – but this one is a mystery. Either way, time is running out until that US release, at which point we hope a decision will be made on how people can enjoy Mulan in the UK.
In Britain, cinemas are open again, and the industry is gradually recovering. The biggest movie of the past week was a 10th anniversary re-release of Inception, which garnered over £200,000 last weekend.
Disney also has another movie releasing on September 4: the aforementioned The New Mutants, which unlike Mulan, you can pre-book tickets for on the Odeon website.
