‘You probably won’t see Moana in a ballgown:’ Auli’i Cravalho reveals whether Moana is a Disney princess or not
When the first Moana movie came out, all the way back in 2016, there was some discussion as to whether the titular character was a princess or not. The movie itself lampshaded this with a quippy discussion between Moana (Auli’i Cravalho) and Maui (Dwayne Johnson). Moana said that she was the daughter of a chief, not a princess, and Maui replied, “If you wear a dress and have an animal sidekick, then you’re a princess.” And, well, Moana did indeed wear a dress and she had not one but two animal sidekicks.
There’s a similar quip that comes in the highly anticipated Moana 2: once again Moana says she’s not a princess, and Maui answers, “Well, a lot of people think that you are.” And let’s not forget, she always appears alongside characters like Aurora, Ariel and Elsa in the Disney princess merch.
But is she technically a princess in the way Disney understands it? After all, most of the Disney heroines are either born into royalty (see: Elsa, Anna, Jasmine), or end up marrying into it (see: Tiana, Belle). Luckily, Auli’i Cravalho—arguably one of the people on the planet most qualified to speak on this matter— has weighed in and answered the question.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly before Moana 2 hits theaters, Cravalho said, “Films are always representative of their times. For today’s day and age, we want to see a young woman being the hero of her own story. So, yeah, she is a princess, but she’s also a hero. I like that those two words are now interchangeable.”
She went on to add, “You probably won’t see Moana in a ballgown. And that’s fine.” Yep, while other princesses are noted for their ballgowns, that wouldn’t be appropriate for Moana at all.
Moana 2 is projected to make over $135 million over Thanksgiving weekend when it opens. If so, it’ll eclipse Frozen II, which made $125 million in the same timeframe. Don’t expect Moana and Elsa to fight for the title of box office queen, though. All the Disney princesses are friends!
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