Dwayne Johnson has officially announced that the live-action remake of Disney’s Moana, where he will play Maui once again, will start production in August.

The demigod will help Moana in her quest to restore the heart of Te Fiti, starting from her home island of Motunui. Johnson shared this news on Instagram, along with the update that the main family members have been cast for the film.

Catherine Laga’aia has been chosen to play Moana after Auli’i Cravalho in the 2016 animated film. John Tui is Chief Tui, Moana’s father and leader of Motunui. Frankie Adams will portray Moana’s mother, Sina, and Rena Owen will play the role of Gramma Tala. Johnson shared his thoughts on the casting and production.

Disney has been focusing on remaking some of its classic animated films into live-action for the past ten years. Movies like The Jungle Book, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, and The Lion King have all been recreated in live-action.

The Lion King’s 2019 remake, starring Donald Glover as Simba and Beyoncé as Nala, has been considered the most successful live-action adaptation so far, grossing over $1.6 billion worldwide.

$544 million of that revenue came from the United States and Canada alone. The original Moana movie made $687 million at the global box office, and Disney hopes the remake will have similar success.

The remake of Moana is set to come out in July 2026, almost a decade after the original animated film premiered. But it’s not the only live-action remake of a classic Disney animated movie in the works. Another Lion King remake featuring Mufasa is scheduled for release in December 2024.

Snow White, one of Disney’s earliest animated films, will hit theaters again on Mar.21, 2025. Additionally, remakes of Lilo & Stitch, Hercules, Bambi, and The Aristocats are also in the works.

Moana is getting a sequel called Moana 2. Dwayne Johnson will be back as Maui in this new film. Auliʻi Cravalho will also return as Moana for her next big adventure.

Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear will take over as the songwriters for this sequel, replacing Lin-Manuel Miranda. Miranda will still be involved in the live-action version of Moana.
The sequel originally started as a Disney+ series in 2020 but was changed to a movie, directed by David Derrick Jr. Moana 2 will be out in theaters on November 27 this year.