Now that the Moana live-action adaptation, which fortunately, will not suffer from the same big problem as the animated sequel. In 2016, Moana became a quick success for Disney, raking in $687 million at the box office and earning a stunning 95% on Rotten Tomatoes. It took a few years, but a sequel was eventually announced, though it was initially intended to be a TV show. Now, in 2024, Moana 2 has finally hit theaters to very similar success, leaving all eyes on the live-action adaptation.
The release plan of the Moana franchise has been somewhat interesting. Despite Moana's incredible success, it took four years for Disney to officially announce that a sequel was in development. From there, the project went from a TV show to a full-blown feature film. Notably, this was around the same time that Disney began transforming its most popular animated movies into live-action adaptations, so perhaps focus was drawn elsewhere. Regardless, Moana's track has not been conventional, and this has led to some potential disappointments for viewers that, hopefully, the live-action movie can fix.
Moana 2 Took Much Longer To Happen Than Expected
The Pros & Cons Of A Hiatus Between Movies
The biggest struggle that has come with Moana 2 is how long it took for the film to happen. At first, audiences were expecting a TV show, which was a unique switch-up, but a welcome one. Later, the show was scrapped for a feature film, which should have decreased the waiting time for the new project. Yet, it still took eight years for Moana 2 to be released. In that time, audiences easily could have forgotten about the film altogether. Moana 2 has done well, but perhaps it came at a cost. Some children may have outgrown Moana.
t took six years for Frozen 2 to come out, and nearly 10 for Inside Out 2.
The long wait time between Moana and Moana 2 isn't necessarily new for Disney. It took six years for Frozen 2 to come out, and nearly 10 for Inside Out 2. Disney needs time to develop the right story and create top-notch animation, so the sequel is just as good as the original. Some could argue that huge IPs like Frozen and Moana do not fall out of the public consciousness, as they are designed for children and adults. Even then, the wait times between movies can be discouraging, and it is something Disney must fix with its live-action films.
Moana's Live-Action Franchise Can't Wait 8 Years To Make A Sequel
How Age Affects Live-Action Moana
A perfect example of Disney's live-action hiatus problem is Moana itself. Disney is planning to make a live-action Moana starring Catherine Laga-aia and Dwayne Johnson. At the moment, Laga-aiga is 17, which is the perfect age for depicting Moana in the first movie. However, if Moana 2, they cannot wait as long as they did with Moana 2. It took eight years for the sequel to premiere, but only three years ed in the world of Moana. Thus, Laga-aiga cannot look 25 when she is actually supposed to be only 20.
Why Disney Has Recast Moana For The Live-Action Movie
Disney officially recast the character of Moana for its 2026 live-action remake, which means a new actor is following in Auliʻi Cravalho's footsteps.
Though age may seem like an arbitrary problem, it actually has a huge effect on a movie's success. If a movie is supposed to be about high schoolers, but all the actors look like they are adults, it can pull viewers out of the story. Furthermore, it creates a bad scenario for young audiences, who start to believe they should look a certain way that is completely unachievable. 25 may not be too far off from 20, but a live-action Moana 2 would benefit from having its actors be as close to the intended characters as possible.
Moana 2's Success Guarantees Disney Won't Wait As Long For A Live-Action Moana Sequel
Will Disney Make A Live-Action Moana 2?
Age aside, it also seems beneficial for Disney to put out a live-action Moana 2 earlier rather than later because of how well the animated movie did. Moana 2 received nearly the same box office earnings as its predecessor, which is impressive considering that critics were not as enamored with the sequel. It would make sense for Disney to ride out this success by putting the live-action Moana into motion right away. They would be capitalizing on their success, and also, would keep interest high for this franchise, which could move in many directions based on how Moana 2 ended.
The only question that remains is whether Disney will actually make a live-action Moana 2. Thus far, Disney has been focused on bringing its original animated movies to live-action, and they have yet to make a sequel. Of course, many of Disney's early sequels were not nearly as celebrated as their originals, so it makes sense that they would not get live-action adaptations. Yet, considering Moana 2's success, it would not be a total surprise if Disney decided to give a live-action sequel a go. Ultimately, Moana 2 could be the start of a new trend for Disney.
Moana 2
- Release Date
- November 27, 2024
- Runtime
- 100 Minutes
- Director
- David G. Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, Dana Ledoux Miller
Cast
Auli'i CravalhoMoana
Maui
WHERE TO WATCH
Moana 2 is the sequel to the 2016 animated film Moana. Directed by David G. Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, and Dana Ledoux Miller, the film continues the journey of Moana as she embarks on new adventures, exploring the vast Pacific Ocean while encountering new characters and challenges along the way.
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