The actor, who was born in California and grew up in Hawaii, says the link between his own whakapapa and New Zealand childhood connections and the film is profound. <\/p>\n
Dwayne\u2019s father, Rocky Johnson, was a WWE Hall of Famer, and his career brought him to train and compete in New Zealand in the late 1970s, before going on to tour the world.<\/p>\n
Maivia, also a professional wrestler, was a dominant presence in Johnson\u2019s young life, especially while he attended Richmond Road Primary School in Auckland for just over a year. <\/p>\n
During that time, Johnson took up rugby, an experience he says saw him get his \u201cass kicked\u201d.<\/p>\n
But it\u2019s not the sport, or the injuries, that left that lasting impression.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe values that I learned as a kid back then \u2013 it was real family,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n
\u201cI grew up an only child, but for the first time I was indoctrinated like, \u2018oh, this is a family.\u2019 Cousins, respect, Sundays, even the presentation of meals \u2013 everything was ceremonial. I\u2019ll never forget that.\u201d<\/p>\n
High Chief Peter Maivia and Dwayne Johnson as Maui. Photos \/ Getty Images and Disney<\/p>\n
Those memories came flooding back when Johnson saw himself transformed into Maui for the live-action film \u2013 covered in traditionally inspired tattoos and with the long locks that were eerily familiar.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I first saw myself in the mirror, I was looking at my grandfather,\u201d he says of Maivia, who died when Johnson was 10.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo every day was a special day.\u201d<\/p>\n
But Johnson is quick to note that his personal journey with the character is only one part of a much bigger picture \u2013 one that spans the diversity of Polynesian cultures, including M\u0101ori, Samoan, Tongan and Fijian traditions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s bigger than my personal experience is our overall culture,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s all of us up there on that big screen, and that is everything to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dwayne’s eldest daughter, Simone Alexandra Johnson, stands alongside him, his wife Lauren Hashian, mother Ata Johnson and father Rocky Johnson. Photo \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n
It is a sentiment reflected strongly in the casting of the film, which features a significant line-up of New Zealand and Pacific talent alongside Johnson. Among them are Whina actor Rena Owen, Ng\u0101ti Hine, Shortland St alum Frankie Adams and Fast & Furious\u2019 John Tui. Flight of the Conchords\u2019 Jemaine Clement also reprises his role as gold-loving crab Tamatoa (who, naturally, was still animated).<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are all amazing actors \u2013 so formidable on their own,\u201d Johnson says with pride of the Kiwi cohort.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve had amazing careers, but what Moana does, and what I love, is it puts them on the biggest platform in the world.”<\/p>\n
For Johnson, authenticity needed to remain at the forefront of the film, and he credits the Disney team for their effort to ensure the story honoured its origins. He says he wouldn\u2019t have entertained being part of it if they hadn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were always asking, \u2018What do we need to do to make sure that we\u2019re authentic, respectful, and protective of the culture?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
John Tui as Chief Tui and Rena Owen as Gramma Tala. Photo \/ Disney<\/p>\n
At the heart of that authenticity, he says, is Owen and her portrayal of Gramma Tala \u2013 a character who serves as the emotional anchor of the story.<\/p>\n
Owen is well known for her powerful on-screen presence; she famously played Beth Heke in Once Were Warriors, and brings a depth of lived experience that Johnson says elevates the role beyond its animated roots.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen it\u2019s Rena \u2013 a real woman, flesh and blood, who has experienced loss and life \u2013 telling Moana, \u2018It\u2019s my time, but it\u2019s also your time,\u2019 it\u2019s a whole other level,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s very emotional.\u201d<\/p>\n
Johnson also lights up when describing Owen off-screen, particularly her unmistakable Kiwi accent and the warmth she brings to the set.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s just amazing,\u201d he says. \u201cI love seeing her because when we hug, it\u2019s a real hug, man.\u201d<\/p>\n
Johnson says these actors are part of an important wave of Pacific Islanders and M\u0101ori who were rarely given opportunities of this scale in major Hollywood productions, and are now set to gain global recognition.<\/p>\n
That includes Moana herself, played by Australian-born Samoan actor Catherine Laga\u2018aia, who brought her own Aotearoa connection (and New Zealand passport) to set.<\/p>\n
The 19-year-old is the daughter of New Zealand-born actor Jay Laga\u2018aia, who starred as Captain Typho in the Star Wars franchise and David Silesi in Street Legal.<\/p>\n
Jay (left), Catherine, Sandie, and Tana Laga’aia. Photo \/ Getty Images<\/p>\n
For Johnson, those family connections and the passing of knowledge are crucial not only to the story of Moana, but also to his own life.<\/p>\n
Johnson is eager for his three daughters, two of whom feature in the film, to experience the places that shaped him, including New Zealand.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t wait to come back,\u201d he says. \u201cMy mum\u2019s been back a few times, and I would love to take my girls there as well. I need to take them to Samoa, and I need to take them back to New Zealand.\u201d<\/p>\n
Johnson hopes that just like Maui, he too will have his own lasting legacy on the Pacific \u2013 one of reconnection to identity, culture and place \u2013 stretching all the way from Grey Lynn to Hollywood.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The actor, who was born in California and grew up in Hawaii, says the link between his own…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":777641,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[25908,617,143787,368611,64,63,20971,447,230316,368612,368613,368609,368614,134,368615,5587,98304,68709,5232,9703,191,4717,1460,17358,19074,38063,4125,286670,29705,116476,3127,47,5036,1787,2652,1771,3206,24677,320,368610,27044,16363,36434,22671],"class_list":["post-777640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-action","tag-and","tag-aotearoa","tag-aotearoas","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-call","tag-celebrities","tag-creation","tag-demigod","tag-depths","tag-dwayne","tag-enchanted","tag-entertainment","tag-fishhook","tag-from","tag-gifting","tag-hauled","tag-heart","tag-his","tag-home","tag-in","tag-is","tag-island","tag-johnson","tag-land","tag-live","tag-maui","tag-millions","tag-moana","tag-new","tag-north","tag-ocean","tag-of","tag-on","tag-rock","tag-role","tag-stories","tag-the","tag-upbringing","tag-using","tag-why","tag-would","tag-zealands"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=777640"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777640\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/777641"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=777640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=777640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=777640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}