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Credit: Walt Disney Studios<\/p>\n
A remake of Moana<\/a> is on the 2026 movie schedule<\/a> for this summer, marking the newest of Disney Animated movies to get the live-action treatment yet. Now, the new movie\u2019s director has shared his thoughts on why he thinks the 2016 movie deserves to be retold already.<\/p>\n Thomas Kail, who famously helmed Hamilton (on-stage and the version on Disney+), is the filmmaker behind the live-action Moana movie. While he said he knows the original film \u201cis in people\u2019s molecules\u201d, he explained why he took on the live-action challenge with these words:<\/p>\n How do you honor this? How do you say ‘we love it too’ and make it something that can be a companion and not try to be the same thing, but also trust what works? The opportunity to have flesh and blood and have human beings tell the story and sing these songs and be in this world, there’s something so fundamentally different about that experience of watching and feeling that.<\/p>\n More Disney News<\/p>\n Walt Disney Animation intro with castle and sunset<\/p>\n I’m All In On Disney’s Latest Live-Action Reimagining Because Of How Hilarious It Could Be<\/a><\/p>\n In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly<\/a>, Kail communicated that he was excited by the idea of human actors retelling the story of the movie despite the comparisons between the beloved animated original being inevitable. The movie sees Dwayne Johnson reprising his role of Maui in 40 pounds of prosthetics and newcomer Catherine Laga\u02bbaia (who is currently 19) as Moana.<\/p>\n Dwayne Johnson has said that he was personally excited to play the character again for a different medium as a chance to \u201cshowcase our Polynesian culture\u201d<\/a> while also communicating that he\u2019s aware how \u201cgood\u201d the original is and wanting to be \u201cprotective\u201d of that. The Rock has also said that the live-action film was representing Polynesian culture \u201cin every department,\u201d including \u201csome department heads, story, development,\u201d and so forth.<\/p>\n Earlier this week, the biggest look at the new Moana movie was released, showing off a peek at a ton of the modern classic\u2019s greatest moments. You can check out the latest trailer below:<\/p>\n The trailer has clearly made a big splash, given it already has 5 million views, but there\u2019s been a lot of negative reactions over it \u2013 Weird Al even took a shot at The Rock\u2019s wig<\/a>! Much like the commentary that came out when the first footage for the live-action Moana<\/a> dropped, with fans asking \u201cwhy did we need this?\u201d and even likening it to \u201can SNL skit\u201d.<\/p>\n It\u2019s the job of Thomas Kail (and the other filmmakers) to prove audiences wrong and show people that the movie is worth the price of admission. So far, most live-action Disney remakes have been huge commercial wins for the House of Mouse, with remakes for Lilo & Stitch, The Lion King, The Beauty & The Beast, Aladdin and Alice in Wonderland making over $1 billion each at the worldwide box office. It\u2019s hard to argue with those numbers!<\/p>\n You can see Moana only in theaters on July 10.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. 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