Disney has been on a train of remaking their classic cartoons in live-action for well over a decade now, delivering hits like The Lion King, Alice in Wonderland, and last year’s Lilo & Stitch, a film that managed to make even more money than Avatar: Fire and Ash. The financial success of these movies means there’s no way they’ll stop, the only problem, of course, is that Disney…ran out of older titles to remake. As a result, Disney’s next stop is to start remaking some of their animated films that aren’t even that old, which is how we get the live-action Moana.
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Set to arrive this summer, technically under ten years since the original was released, Moana will bring the Academy Award-nominated movie into the live-action realm. Fans already knew that Dwayne Johnson would reprise his role of Maui for the new Moana, featuring newcomer Catherine Laga’aia as the title heroine. The new Moana trailer reveals another confirmation for the film, though, confirming that Jemaine Clement will return to voice Tamatoa, the giant treasure-hoarding crab who is Maui’s nemesis. Check out the Moana final trailer below.
Live-Action Moana Reveals Best Moments From the Original
In addition to showing off the glitz-obsessed crab Tamatoa for the first time in the final trailer, Moana has also revealed more moments from the animated film that have been recreated for the upcoming movie, including a look at the deity Te Fiti, Maui’s transformations into other animals (plus his moving tattoos), and, of course, Moana’s pet rooster, Heihei, and her pet pig, Pua.
One thing that isn’t featured in the new Moana trailer is even a hint about the potential for new songs that might be in the film. The original film featured original music by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Opetaia Foaʻi and Mark Mancina, all of whom are returning for the film. Typically, the live-action remakes by Disney use the same songs and music as the originals, albeit with updated recordings with the new cast, but there’s often at least one new song in the hopes of securing an Oscar nomination. Considering the original Moana nabbed an Academy Award nomination for the song “How Far I’ll Go,” it would be surprising if no new songs were introduced.
Directed by Emmy and Tony Award winner Thomas Kail (Hamilton), Moana marks a major shift in Disney’s strategy for live-action remakes of their animated films. Last year’s Lilo & Stitch was the most recent film that the company had remade, reviving a film from 2002 after twenty-two years; when Moana premieres this summer, it will have been less than ten years since the original was released. Even more surprising than not waiting a decade to remake a hit animated movie in live-action, though, is that there’s clearly still gas in the tank for the animated Moana series.
In 2016, the original Moana was a hit, with over $687 million at the global box office, and though it took eight years for Moana 2 to arrive in theaters, it proved to be an even bigger success. Moana 2 grossed over $1.059 billion at the box office. Though this does clearly reveal that audiences are eager to see more from this series, it also sets up the potential for the live-action Moana to be one of the biggest hits of the summer.
Moana arrives exclusively in theaters July 10, 2026.
