Overview
- The live-action Vaiana opened in German cinemas on Thursday, July 9, following a Hollywood Bowl world premiere where Dwayne Johnson performed in traditional Samoan dress.
- Australian newcomer Catherine Laga’aia makes her film debut as Vaiana opposite Dwayne Johnson, with the production saying a global casting drew about 32,000 applications.
- Filmmakers built a physical Motonui village on a farm outside Atlanta and report research and craft collaboration with institutions such as Te Papa and Samoan artisans for costumes and sets.
- Early reviews praise the human cast and newly recorded versions of the original songs but single out the still-digital animal and nature effects as less convincing than the live-action work.
- The release continues Disney’s strategy of turning hit animated musicals into live-action films, leveraging Lin-Manuel Miranda’s songs and the original 2016 title’s $640m-plus global box office as context for the remake trend.