The new clip offers the first look at Dwayne \u201cThe Rock\u201d Johnson<\/a> reprising his role as demigod Maui, as well as newcomer Catherine Laga\u2019aia as the titular character, replacing Auli\u02bbi Cravalho<\/a>, who voiced Moana in the 2016 film and the animated sequel<\/a>.<\/p>\n On X, several posters noted that everything revealed in the trailer so far sticks closely to the original film released a decade ago.<\/p>\n One wrote<\/a>: \u201cIt looks like a shot for shot remake. What’s the point? Even the animated characters look pulled straight from the original. Put your efforts elsewhere and be creative again.\u201d<\/p>\n Another added<\/a>: \u201cHundreds of millions of dollars wasted so Dwayne Johnson can don a terrible wig and deliver the same lines but with worse timing. New low for the corporate slopmongers. Can’t even make it past the two min mark of this trailer, I don’t need to see anything from the last 19 seconds.\u201d<\/p>\n Many fans questioned whether Disney could use their resources more creatively, with one saying<\/a>: \u201cDisney trying to nostalgia bait us with this live action slop when the original isn\u2019t even a decade old. i\u2019ve never seen a creative drought this dire.\u201d<\/p>\n Another wrote<\/a>: \u201cYou already made a fantastic movie. Moana is nearly perfect. Everything about this looks like a less charming version of the original. I hope it fails miserably so you\u2019ll stop insisting on giving this treatment to animated movies.\u201d<\/p>\n Along with Johnson and Lag\u2019aia, John Tui is set to play Moana\u2019s father Chief Tui, while Frankie Adams will play Moana\u2019s mom Sina, and Rena Owen will be Gramma Tala. Lin-Manuel Miranda is producing the film after writing the wildly popular music for the original movie, along with Mark Mancina and Opetaia Foa\u02bbi.<\/p>\n Moana is the latest in Disney\u2019s series of live-action adaptations, which have largely been nearly identical to their original source, joining recent remakes of Lilo & Stitch<\/a> and Snow White<\/a>. Despite complaints, Disney\u2019s business of remaking movies has proved to be extremely lucrative, <\/a>with Lilo & Stitch breaking box office records<\/a> last year.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, an animated sequel to Moana was released in 2024, earning a three-star review from The Independent critic Clarisse Loughrey.<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Dwayne](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/MNA-TP2-0087943-(1).jpeg\")
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson stars in Disney’s live-action remake of ‘Moana’ (Disney Enterprises)<\/p>\n