Disney’s latest live-action remake of Moana, directed by Thomas Kail and starring Dwayne Johnson and Catherine Lagaʻaia, opened to a $43 million domestic box office and $95 million globally, marking one of the studio’s weakest performances in its long-running series of animated remakes. The film. Which cost $250 million to produce. Faced criticism for being a near shot-for-shot remake of the 2016 animated original and received a 34% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes. Audience reception was more positive. With 63% saying they would recommend the film, and 78% of parents expressing the same sentiment, according to PostTrak and CinemaScore.

Struggling Against Competition and Nostalgia

The film’s performance is seen as a product of timing and market saturation. Arriving just under two years after the release of Moana 2 and in a crowded weekend with Universal’s Minions & Monsters and Pixar’s Toy Story 5, Moana struggled to stand out. Minions & Monsters earned $20.5 million. While Toy Story 5 added $18.5 million, with the latter’s global total reaching $879.1 million. According to David A. Gross, publisher of the box office newsletter FranchiseRe, the film’s opening is “not close to Disney’s past remakes,” and it is now competing with the 2025 box office underperformance of Snow White, which made $42 million in its debut.

Disney has had mixed success with its live-action remakes, with some films like The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast grossing over $1 billion globally, while others like Snow White have floundered. Moana is projected to lose around $100 million in its theatrical run, similar to Snow White, which ended with $205 million worldwide against the same budget. Paul Dergarabedian. Head of marketplace trends for Rentrak. Noted that the PG-rated market is oversaturated, further diluting Moana’s appeal.

Disney’s Live-Action Remake Strategy

Disney’s strategy of remaking its animated classics in live-action has been a financial success for the studio, with over 25 such films released since 1994. The strategy aims to introduce classic films to new generations while using nostalgia for older audiences. Despite financial wins, the artistic reception has been mixed. Films like Alice in Wonderland (2010) showed the commercial potential of the genre, but more recent efforts have faced declining critical praise. In Germany, media like NewsFlix have noted that while these films continue to perform well commercially, they increasingly fall short of audience and critical expectations.

Moana follows in the footsteps of earlier adaptations like Cinderella, Aladdin, and Lilo & Stitch, all of which grossed over $1 billion. However, with upcoming projects such as live-action versions of Rapunzel and Hercules, the pressure is on Disney to deliver both critical and box office success. The film’s overseas performance also lagged, with $52 million, falling short of Disney’s internal projections of a $140 million global launch.

Strong Openings in South Korea

Despite its underwhelming global debut, Moana saw strong early success in South Korea, where it added 403,822 admissions over the July 10–12 weekend. As of July 12, the film had sold 511,078 tickets in total, making it the market leader for the summer season. The Korean Film Council (KOFIC) reported that the film remained at the top of the box office for five consecutive days, selling 164,906 tickets on July 12 alone. Toy Story 5 followed in second place, with 98,665 admissions, while the suspense thriller The Eyes, starring Shin Min-a, placed third with 95,586 admissions.

Meanwhile, Disney announced the July 8, 2026, release of the French-distributed version of Moana, titled Vaiana, la Légende du bout du monde, with the same cast and director. The trailer emphasized the film’s transition from animated to live-action while retaining its Polynesian setting, musical elements, and character design. Auliʻi Cravalho, who voiced the original animated Vaiana, is listed as an executive producer. The film’s production team includes Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia, and Lin-Manuel Miranda, who also contributed to the original soundtrack.

With a mixed critical reception, financial underperformance, and a crowded box office scene, Moana has become a case study in the risks of overreliance on nostalgia. As Disney continues its live-action remake strategy, the studio must balance commercial ambition with creative innovation to avoid repeating the missteps of Moana and Snow White.