DUBAI: When Disney first announced a live-action remake of its 2016 animated movie “Moana,” it raised a familiar question: Why revisit a movie that had already become one of the studio’s most beloved modern classics?
For director Thomas Kail, the answer lay in finding something only live action could offer.
“We’re here because we love the animated version as much as the rest of the world,” Kail told Arab News. From the earliest stages of development, he said the goal was to tell the same story “with flesh and blood, to put it up on its feet and have human beings interacting, eye-to-eye, soul-to-soul. We knew there was a chance to reach for a level of emotion that we were really excited about.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson plays the character he voiced in the original. (Supplied)
“We also talked about what it would mean to memorialize and celebrate Polynesian culture,” he continued. “With Disney, we knew this was something that was going to reach all around the world, and so how could we ensure that that this could be another version of representation, not to replace what came before, but to stand on its own as a companion to it?
“I come from the theater, where making a revival is our lifeblood, and I think everybody has seen something that existed before and is now being interpreted anew, and that’s something that Catherine (Laga’aia) brings to Moana,” he added, talking about the young star of the film.
Authenticity became the guiding principle of the production.
“It was really important for us, for everything in the village to feel tactile, to feel the dirt, the sweat, the sand, the water,” Kail said.
The crew built an enormous island village complete with working structures and practical effects designed to give actors and the hundreds of background performers something real to inhabit. Even the film’s 29-foot canoe was, Kail said, “completely seaworthy” and capable of handling elaborate stunt work. Rather than serving as a simple prop, it became “one of the other characters in our film.”
Catherine Laga’aia as Moana. (Supplied)
That same emphasis on authenticity resonated with Catherine Laga’aia, the newcomer entrusted with bringing Moana to life, working opposite Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson — who plays the character he voiced in the original: the shapeshifting demigod Maui.
“It was really cool to get to work with Dwayne, to have somebody who’s so well-versed in so many different elements of performing on screen. It was like seeing a master at work. He’s very down to earth and very chill, so that was a really nice energy to come into,” she said. “It did really feel very reminiscent of Moana and Maui’s relationship, where I’m stepping onto this canoe, not knowing too much of what’s going on or how to do things, but I have someone there who’s willing and able to teach me.”
Laga’aia also found an unexpected mentor in Auli’i Cravalho, whose voice performance defined Moana for an entire generation and who returns this time as a producer.
“Auli’i is my Moana. That’s who I grew up with. I have so much respect and so much gratitude for her, especially being gracious and aware enough to see that this could be an opportunity for another Pacific Islander to fill this role.”
For Kail, casting Laga’aia became one of the defining moments of the production. After reviewing thousands of auditions, he remembered seeing a tape of the then-16-year-old performing “How Far I’ll Go.” What stood out was, as he put it, “that light in the eyes that you hope for.” Her audition in New York confirmed his instincts. “If you’re smart, you put your hand up and say, ‘Oh, I think something’s happening,’” he said.
Initially, the possibility of becoming Disney’s next live-action heroine felt distant — “a pipe dream” — for Laga’aia. Only once filming began did the significance of inheriting one of Disney’s most recognizable characters truly sink in.
Asked about the Disney heroines she admired growing up, Laga’aia cited Rapunzel, Mulan and Jasmine (from “Aladdin”), and her character, she said, combines “Rapunzel’s curiosity, Mulan’s bravery, Jasmine’s wisdom,” while remaining unmistakably distinct. And proudly Pacific Islander.
