Remember when Disney announced a Moana TV series back in 2020? The bad news: We’re not getting that anymore. The good news: It’s been retooled into an entire feature-length movie!
“We were impressed by what we saw and knew it deserved a theatrical release,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said yesterday. So what can we expect from this surprise sequel?
What is the plot of Moana 2?
The official synopsis released by Disney reads: “After receiving an unexpected call from her wayfinding ancestors, Moana must journey to the far seas of Oceania and into dangerous, long-lost waters for an adventure unlike anything she’s ever faced.” Everything else about the plot is being kept under wraps for now.
Who’s in the cast for Moana 2?
It was clear from the beginning that Dwayne Johnson was returning to voice Maui, especially since he tweeted the teaser after it debuted. Cravalho was more of a question mark. But on February 27, Deadline dropped the news that the 23-year-old actress, most recently seen in the musical version of Mean Girls, would be “definitely returning” to her breakout role.
However, Cravalho won’t return for the live-action version of Moana set to release in 2025. She said in an Instagram statement last year, “I am truly honored to pass this baton to the next young woman of Pacific Island descent to honor our incredible Pacific peoples, cultures, and communities that helped inspire her story, and I look forward to all the beautiful Pacific representation to come.”
Cravalho will also be an executive producer on the live-action film and who knows, perhaps she’ll return for a Moana 3 if there ever is one! It’s clearly a franchise very dear to her heart.
As for other characters appearing in this new movie … If you take a close look at the first officially released promo image (see above), you’ll notice that Heihei the chicken is there, so perhaps Alan Tudyk is coming back to voice him. There are also three new characters in the image, on the boat with Maui and Moana, but we don’t yet know who they are or who will play them.
And sorry, Lin-Manuel Miranda fans, but he won’t be doing songwriting duties for Moana 2. Instead, Grammy Award winners Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear will be writing the songs. However, Opetaia Foa’i and Mark Mancina, who did the music for the original movie, will be back.
As for directing, that job will go to Dave Derrick Jr., who worked in the art department for the original Moana.
Is there a trailer for Moana 2?
Before the trailer debuted, Disney released a little teaser where we got a glimpse of Moana on a beautiful island. It’s still available if you want to give it a look. But the full thing dropped on May 29:
The teaser trailer gives us some dialogue from Moana about how she seeks to “reconnect our people across the entire ocean,” and an appearance from Maui where he suggests eating cute chicken and pig duo Hei Hei and Pua. Don’t do it!
The official teaser poster for Moana 2 was released on May 28. It features the same shot that was in the teaser trailer, Moana on the island, and in front of her on the pristine yellow sands her oar and Maui’s hook form a “2.”
What’s the release date for Moana 2?
We’re getting Moana 2 much sooner than anyone expected! It’ll be out this year, slated for November 27. The weather will be much colder at that point so we’ll be able to appreciate the sunny, sandy beaches all the more.
Published: May 29, 2024 09:52 am