The announcement of Moana 2 that came out of nowhere was a pleasant early 2024 surprise for many, especially when it’s set to arrive later this year, but there’s cause for concern.
As we previously explained, the original plan was to make a Moana follow-up series exclusive to Disney+ instead of a theatrical sequel. However, recent (self-inflicted) streaming market conditions have caused Disney to do a hard pivot towards fewer series and more movies. You know, the tried-and-tested formula that turned Disney into a seemingly unbeatable transmedia behemoth in the 2010s.
Those who’d been closely following the news from Disney’s animation branch knew this change couldn’t have possibly happened too long ago, as Disney likes to announce what’s in the works well in advance of the release dates and the Moana Disney+ series was believed to still be in development last year. Animators and VFX artists surely aren’t too happy about this hard pivot meant to get an animated blockbuster ready for Thanksgiving 2024, but it also looks like the first movie’s stars, Auli’i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson, weren’t confirmed to return until very recently.
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