Game of Thrones director Alex Graves sought by Sony for live-action Mulan, not an Asian director as expected

Graves has also worked on the likes of The West Wing, House of Cards, and Taken

Following outrage over a ‘leaked’ script spec for Disney’s Mulan, the company issued a statement saying the film’s lead character will not be a ‘white male’.

"Mulan is and will always be the lead character in the story, and all primary roles, including the love interest, are Chinese,” they told various publications, adding that an Asian director would also be brought in for the film.

Soon after, reports emerged that Sony’s Mulan - completely separate to the aforementioned Disney project - had lost its director, Ang Lee. The studio, however, were said to be keen on getting an Asian director on board.

Less than a week later and Sony has completely backtracked on their statement; Deadline is claiming Alex Graves - best known for his work on Game of Thrones - will be helming the project. Graves has also worked on the likes of The West Wing, House of Cards, and the upcoming NBC drama Taken.

As you may have suspected, Tweeters were not impressed by the news, venting their anger on the social media platform.

Mulan is based on a Chinese legend which tells the story of a young girl who disguises herself as a man and goes to war against the Huns in place of her ailing father.

A Hollywood diversity report recently revealed that the dire situation has barely improved over the course of a decade. Just 26.3 per cent of all characters across the top 100 films of 2015 were from underrepresented racial groups.