Yifei Liu wants to show fans ‘a glimpse of themselves’ in ‘Mulan’

Chinese actress Yifei Liu recently sat down for a candid interview where she touched upon her own upbringing, her hopes for Mulan and even dished out some beautiful intricacies of the character she plays.

During her interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actress began by saying, “Mulan makes it happen — not through big drama, but through little decisions and bravery and self-awareness.”

Touching upon the grueling audition process that spanned across a total of three months, Liu admitted, “It’s not just about the muscle or the look or the fight, it’s more about your energy.”

Even director Nikki Caro jumped into the conversation and admitted, “I needed a warrior more than an actress.” With that thought process in mind it became like trying to find a single needle in “a global-sized haystack.”

The director also pointed out that his main vision for the film was to find an actress open enough. He was quoted saying, “It was really important that the actress we chose was open to building her body to a state where she could pass as a man in a man's army. I wanted to see the shoulders of a soldier.”

During the course of the interview, Liu touched upon the inner strength her character possessed and claimed, “Mulan is not a superhero, so her physical action needed to be anchored in a strong female body and bounded by the laws of physics.”

Liu was able to perform 90% out of all of her stunts by herself, for “As long as they gave me the chance, I wanted to try it.”

She concluded the interview by saying, “if fans can see how powerful they are and get a glimpse of themselves in her (the character), then I’ll be happy.”