Walt Disney Studios is preparing for the theatrical rollout of its live-action Moana adaptation, scheduled to premiere in theaters on July 10, 2026. Directed by Thomas Kail, the upcoming musical feature marks the newest entry in the studio’s ongoing portfolio of live-action reimagining projects. The film arrives a decade after the original 2016 animated movie achieved widespread critical and box office success, earning nearly $700 million globally and securing an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature. The property expanded its commercial footprint with the late 2024 theatrical sequel, Moana 2, which grossed over $1 billion worldwide.
The live-action production brings back Dwayne Johnson to portray the demigod Maui in a physical capacity. Newcomer Catherine Laga’aia stars as the titular wayfinder Moana, while Auli’i Cravalho—who voiced the character in the previous animated iterations—serves as an executive producer alongside Kail, Scott Sheldon, and Charles Newirth. The production features musical contributions from Lin-Manuel Miranda, Opetaia Foa’i, and Mark Mancina, with Mancina returning to compose the score. The film is produced by Johnson, Dany Garcia, Beau Flynn, Hiram Garcia, and Miranda. The high-profile release follows varying commercial trajectories for Disney’s recent live-action remakes. While older adaptations like Alice in Wonderland and Beauty and the Beast crossed the $1 billion mark globally, more recent theatrical outings such as The Little Mermaid and Snow White faced sharper box-office struggles relative to their substantial production budgets.
Moana will anchor a highly competitive mid-summer theatrical frame. The Disney musical is slated to debut one week ahead of Universal Pictures’ upcoming Christopher Nolan feature The Odyssey, and three weeks before Sony Pictures’ Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
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