Over the years, Ming-Na Wen has established herself as an iconic action hero in her own right, between her roles in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D and The Mandalorian. Her most iconic role continues to be the voice behind one of the most beloved Disney Princesses: Mulan. As the actress reprises her voice role on the Gremlins series, she spoke to CinemaBlend about how her comfort in the vocal booth has changed since starring in the movie over 25 years ago.
When Ming-Na Wen joined Disney’s Mulan for the 1998 film, she had gotten her start in live-action films like The Joy Luck Club and Street Fighter. In our interview, the actress reflected on what it was like to voice an animated character for that role. In her words:
Mulan was my very first voiceover project in animation, so it was a pretty big deal. And I learned so much. Like, I didn’t realize you’d do it by yourself in the booth with a reader. I didn’t realize that it would take so long. So what I learned to love about animation is the magic of when it’s all put together and you actually see it and experience it as an audience member along with everyone else, with all the fans.
That’s right. While the experience of voicing an animated movie sounds like a dream job, as Wen spoke to, it can also be a rather isolating experience where a lot of imagination has to come into play. She didn’t have her star-studded cast like Eddie Murphy, BD Wong, Pat Morita or James Hong next to her during performances. Oftentimes it was just her and someone reading all the other lines to her. She continued:
And then with this project now, I just feel after 25 years, I’m such a pro as far as getting into the booth, I like wearing a pair of comfortable pajamas. I know how to do it. I love it. You know, it’s a great gig whenever I get it. This was just very much me being me in a lot of ways. I get to be a mom.
Wen is back to voice Fong Wing, the mother of Sam, in Season 2 of the Gremlins series after the series began in 2023 with Secrets of the Mogwai. This time around, in what’s titled The Wild Batch, the actress reprises her supporting role, but she’s even joined by some Mulan cast members. James Hong was Chi Fu in the Disney movie, and he plays Sam’s grandfather, who often speaks of adventures he used to take. BD Wong, who played Mulan’s love interest of Shang Li, plays her husband Hon Wing. While Wen doesn’t get to work with them face to face, it’s a sweet reunion, isn’t it?
In the new Gremlins season, Sam’s parents and grandfather will take a backseat to the storyline as Sam, Elle and Gizmo find themselves in San Francisco for a new adventure. But during the interview, Wen shared that the band will be “back together again” for the second half which will take the Wing family, Gizmo and Elle in the American West.
You can watch the first five episodes of Gremlins: The Wild Batch right now with a Max subscription. Check out what Joe Dante and the producers of Gremlins told us about Gizmo returning to live action.