Disney's live-action Mulan remake has struggled in China despite the story's roots there, and is only going to make half of what The Lion King remake did last year. The movie is the latest in Disney's seemingly never-ending line of live-action reimaginings of their animated classics, following the likes of The Jungle Book, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin. While the results for each have differed, the key difference with Mulan is that the movie was released on the Disney+ streaming service for a premium fee, rather than in theaters due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Despite this, the movie has reportedly done well on the service, making over $33 million in its first weekend, which is more than it seems, given Disney doesn't have to share takings with theaters like it does during a traditional cinema release. With a budget of over $200 million though, Disney was also banking on Mulan's theatrical release in China to make up some of the shortfall. However, the movie hasn't connected with Chinese audiences the way Disney would have liked, debuting to a disappointing $23 million last weekend.

Related: Mulan Live-Action vs. Animated: Which Disney Movie Version Is Better

Now, a report from The Wrap reveals that it had a similarly disappointing second weekend take in China and is on track to take in only $45 to $50 million during its entire run in theaters there. That's less than half what the 2019 Lion King remake made in China, with that blockbuster raking in $120 million during its entire run. It's also less than the $53 million Aladdin made in China, despite that movie having a seemingly smaller appeal for Chinese audiences than Mulan.

The report goes on to identify a number of factors for Mulan's failure, including the fact that the movie debuted in China a week after it was released on Disney+, meaning pirated copies were already available. Additionally, the Communist Party of China placed a blackout on media coverage of the movie over American criticism of the film's credits, which thank security forces reportedly involved in the detention and oppression of Uyghur Muslims happening in the country. Besides the factors listed above, the movie's cultural inaccuracies, which are not as obvious to Americans, have played a part in Chinese audiences staying away from the movie.

Combine those three factors with the continued effects of the pandemic around the world, and incredibly strong competition in the form of the Chinese blockbuster The Eight Hundred - which is still pulling in huge audiences across the country - and it seems like Mulan's Chinese theatrical release was destined to be troubled. Unfortunately for Disney, that means they won't be able to rely on the market there to make a profit with Mulan, and will likely suffer a loss on the movie. This may also have precipitated the raft of Disney release delays announced on Wednesday, including Black Widow, which many thought might follow Mulan by releasing on Disney+ later this year. Instead, it seems Disney executives have realized that if they want to make a profit on their tentpole films, they'll likely need to wait until they can release movies in theaters again post-pandemic. Based on Mulan's disappointing box office performance in China, it's not hard to see why they'd think that either.

Next: Mulan vs. Hamilton: What Disney+'s 2020 Release Battle Reveals

Source: The Wrap