Inspired by Robin Williams' performance as the Genie in Aladdin (1992), Mulan's producers hoped to cast another comedian as Mushu, and had originally hired Joe Pesci in the role.

After deciding to go in an African-American direction for Mulan's sidekick, they cast Eddie Murphy, who recorded all of his dialogue from his home studio due to scheduling conflicts.

Disney's decision to not include the character in the 2020 live-action adaptation of Mulan in an effort to be more culturally sensitive to Chinese audiences drew mixed reviews from fans of Mushu.

[1] Mulan, the only child of aging war veteran Fa Zhou, disguises herself as a man and enlists herself in the army, risking the death penalty should her gender be discovered.

[6] Determined to have Mulan prove herself, Mushu forges a letter that results in her inexperienced squadron of new recruits traveling to the Tung Shao Pass, where they discover that the village and the rest of their army had already been massacred by the Huns.

[24] Inspired by the success of Robin Williams' performance as the Genie in Aladdin (1992),[25][26] the producers hoped to cast a comic actor in the role, and had considered Joe Pesci, Steve Martin, and Sinbad.

[32]According to director Tony Bancroft, Mushu had always been described as the opposite of Mulan personality-wise, and felt an African-American character would deliver the perfect contrast to the heroine's stoic demeanor.

[28] Tom Bancroft, Mushu's supervising animator and Tony's twin brother, was initially unsure about contrasting the film's serious depiction of Chinese culture against an urban voice, but ultimately felt the character would infuse Mulan with dynamic chemistry.

[40] Murphy accepted the role partially because he wanted to make some films that his own children could watch, having mostly starred in movies intended for adults prior to Mulan.

[45] According to Tony, they were forced to comply with Murphy's demands to avoid the risk of not completing his animation on time, which he admitted ultimately benefited the performance.

[32] They decided to replace it with Mushu introducing himself to Mulan in the manner of an African-American preacher because they felt they needed a big introduction in the song's absence.

[54] Murphy is one of the film's few original cast members who did not reprise his role in the sequel Mulan II (2004),[55] early versions of which had a dragon love interest for Mushu.

[54][57] Additionally, character designer Harald Siepermann drew concept art from his studio in Germany for the first few weeks of production,[58] but remained uncredited due to working less than 200 hours on the film.

[54] Due to constant script revisions early on, Tom drew generic versions of the character, avoiding poses and facial expressions.

[62] Tom was also inspired by the work of fellow Disney animator Eric Goldberg, who had sketched Aladdin's Genie briefly transforming into a dragon.

[28] Although the animators had wanted Mushu's tale to be purple to match his horns, a Disney executive insisted that it be red like the rest of the character, much to Tony's chagrin.

[57] He was also inspired by Murphy's work in Trading Places (1983) and Saturday Night Live, specifically his facial expressions, joke delivery, and how he uses his hands,[57] as well as prints of the actor's face.

[66] Disney archivist Dave Smith described Mushu as boastful, brave, and excitable, a character who "has more than enough personality and bravado for the biggest dragons", despite his small size.

[69] Margaret A. McGurk of The Cincinnati Enquirer called Mushu "a major hoot ... although how this thoroughly modern American personality landed in ancient China is a pure mystery".

[70] JoBlo.com's Berge Garabedian crowned him the film's "real star", recalling that Mushu "managed to get a crack out of the audience during every single one of its wonderful appearances".

[94] Mushu also helped launch the family-friendly period of the actor's career,[74][95] during which he acquired a younger fanbase by appearing in several family films;[96][97][98] he did not star in another R-rated project until 2019.

[74] Tim Grierson of Cracked.com ranked Mushu his second-best family film performance, citing it as a precursor to his long-running role as Donkey in the Shrek franchise.

[26][77] Both Hollis Chacona of The Austin Chronicle and film critic Todd McCarthy described the character's anachronisms as jarring, despite finding some of his jokes amusing.

[101][75] Author Mari Ness called Murphy an irritating, unnecessary addition to the cast, criticizing his perceived reliance on anachronistic humor, and declaring him inferior to the Genie.

[108][109] Alter noted that not some of Murphy's material has not aged well in the decades since the film's release, specifically his character's jokes about Mongolian cuisine and wearing drag.

[126] Several publications consider Mushu to be among the greatest dragons in popular culture,[127][128][129][130] including MTV News,[131] USA Today,[132] Polygon,[133] and Comic Book Resources.

[130][138] The character's popularity has led to him appearing in various tie-in media, including sequels, video games, and theme parks,[136] notably Hong Kong Disneyland beginning with its opening ceremony in 2005.

[142][143][144] According to the University of Southern California professor Stanley Rosen, the character was well received in the United States, but accused by some Chinese audiences of trivializing their culture and Mulan's story.

[153] Producer Jason Reed explained that Mushu was written out because "the dragon is a sign of respect and of strength and power and sort of using it as a silly sidekick did not play well with a traditional Chinese audience".

[159] In a review for CNN, historian Kelly Hammond panned the removal of Mushu as one of the remake's biggest missteps, which she said caused the film to rely on outdated jokes from male soldiers for comic relief.