Disney’s new live-action remake Moana sails with a franchise record.
About ten years ago, Disney released the animated movie Moana, a magical story about a Polynesian girl (voiced by Auliʻi Cravalho) who sails across the ocean to save her people, aided by the demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson). Following a 2024 sequel, Disney has now created a live-action version of Moana.
Tickets are now available and the latest trailer is out, and we now know how long the live-action Moana remake is. Disney has confirmed to ScreenRant that the movie will run for 1 hour and 51 minutes, making it the longest film in the Moana series so far.
| Every Moana Movie | Runtime |
|---|---|
| Moana (2016) | 107 minutes |
| Moana 2 (2025) | 100 minutes |
| Moana (2026) | 111 minutes |
The original 2016 film was an hour and 47 minutes long. The new remake is four minutes longer, which likely means it includes a few new scenes or expands on existing ones to better suit a live-action format. This fits with a pattern at Disney, where their live-action remakes are typically a few minutes longer than the originals. For instance, the upcoming Lilo & Stitch remake in 2025 is 23 minutes longer than the original animated movie.
With Disney increasingly remaking its animated classics in live-action, Moana stands out as having the shortest time between its original release and the upcoming remake – almost a decade sooner than any other. A remake makes sense, though, considering the film earned $687.2 million worldwide and was almost universally praised by audiences and critics.
The Disney film Moana received high praise, earning a 95% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics especially loved its classic hero’s story, respectful portrayal of Polynesian culture, and memorable music by Lin-Manuel Miranda, with the song “How Far I’ll Go” being a standout. The film went on to be nominated for two Academy Awards: Best Original Song and Best Animated Feature.
Following the first movie’s success, Disney expanded it into a franchise, although the sequel took nearly eight years to develop. In fact, the original plan was to develop a miniseries before shifting to the movie format. Although Moana 2 reviews weren’t nearly as strong, it did join the billion-dollar club, solidifying the popularity of the Disney franchise.
Unlike the sequel, the live-action remake didn’t take as long to develop after the project was announced in 2023. Although Johnson will reprise his live-action counterpart, newcomer Catherine Laga’aia will portray live-action Moana since Cravalho, who will be an executive producer, wanted to “pass the baton.” Thomas Kail also helms the directing duties for the upcoming iteration.
Despite some concerns about the new live-action version of Moana – including the look of Dwayne Johnson’s character and questions about the use of AI – there’s a lot of excitement for the Disney film. It’s expected to closely follow the beloved 2016 original, but a few added scenes should enhance the story and Moana’s journey to return a precious item to the goddess Te Fiti.
The live-action Moana will be released in theaters on July 10, 2026.
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2026-06-11 07:29