Live-Action Moana Remake Will Be Helmed By Hamilton Director Thomas Kail
In case the box office returns for director Rob Marshall's "The Little Mermaid" this weekend didn't tip you off, Disney is nowhere near done remaking its animated features as live-action/CGI films. Personally, I'm just hoping we get a live-action "Atlantis: The Lost Empire" or a "The Black Cauldron" remake that does proper justice to Lloyd Alexander's "The Chronicles of Prydain." To be clear, I'm in no way advocating for Disney to keep churning out these live-action remakes. But seeing as they're clearly not going to stop doing that anytime soon, we might as well try and get something interesting and unexpected out of this nonsense, right?
Anyway, The Hollywood Reporter has gotten wind that Thomas Kail has been hired to direct "Moana," a live-action take on the studio's hit 2016 animated musical film that was only just announced back in April. Dwayne Johnson will reprise his role from the original film as the heavily-tattooed, musically-inclined demigod Maui in live-action for the remake, in addition to producing through his Seven Bucks Productions banner with Dany Garcia and Hiram Garcia. Original Moana voice actor Auli'i Cravalho will also produce but has confirmed she won't be returning as the titular character.
"When I was cast as Moana at 14, it wonderfully changed my life and started my career," Cravalho explained in a video on her Instagram. "In this live-action retelling, I will not be reprising the role." She added:
"I believe it is absolutely vital that casting accurately represents the characters and stories we want to tell. I'm truly honored to pass this baton to the next woman of Pacific Island descent to honor our incredible Pacific peoples, cultures, and communities that help inspire her story, and I look forward to all the beautiful Pacific representation to come. Mahalo."
The man is non-stop
Thomas Kail will reportedly direct the live-action "Moana" based on a script by Dana Ledoux Miller and Jared Bush, the latter of whom also co-wrote the original animated film. As with the majority of Disney remakes, the live-action "Moana" is expected to adhere closely to the 2016 movie by centering on its namesake — a teenage Polynesian islander who sets out to save her home from ecological ruin by teaming up with Maui to revitalize the goddess of nature, Te Fiti. Along the way, the pair and Moana's animal sidekicks face off against deadly coconut pirates like something out of "Mad Max: Fury Road" and a giant coconut crab with a David Bowie-styled singing voice.
("Moana" is awesome, by the way, in case you had forgotten.)
Kail famously directed "Moana" songwriter Lin-Manuel Miranda in the original Broadway stage productions of Miranda's smash-hit musicals "In the Heights" and "Hamilton," in addition to directing the filmed version of the latter that premiered on Disney+ in 2020. He also helmed a good chunk of the acclaimed "Fosse/Verdon" miniseries produced by Miranda and earned an Emmy for directing "Grease Live!" in 2016. More recently, Kail helmed "Sweeney Todd" on Broadway, delivering a revival of the classic Stephen Sondheim musical that /Film's Caroline Cao felt "stays true to its theatrical technicalities."
Look, I agree wholeheartedly with what Auli'i Cravalho said about the need for more authentic Pacific Island representation in film and there's no denying Kail is a talented, hard-working guy. But that doesn't stop me from wishing we could get more original stories about Pacific Islanders instead of more tired Disney rehashes that, if history is any indicator, very rarely live up to the original movies and, at worst, serve to diminish the value of animation.
The live-action "Moana" has yet to set a release date.