Moana has become one of Disney's most lucrative animated franchises. That was evident when Moana 2—originally planned as a Disney+ TV series—was released in 2024 and grossed $1.059 billion worldwide.
With that in mind, it's easy to understand why the studio had such high hopes for this summer's live-action Moana. Dwayne Johnson reprised his role as Maui, but after receiving largely negative reviews (the movie has 31% on Rotten Tomatoes), it has bombed at the box office, so far grossing only $265 million on a reported $250 million production budget.
While Disney Animation is reportedly hard at work on an animated Moana 3, there certainly won't be another live-action movie featuring the title character and Johnson's Demigod. Now, the professional wrestler-turned-actor has broken his silence on the bad reviews.
"Our first two reviews came out," he told PEOPLE (via Toonado.com). "I’ll never forget it. They were amazing. I was like, 'Wow.'" However, then "it went another way," with Johnson laughing and adding, "as sometimes happens."
"That’s just the way it goes because we’re in this business," Johnson continued, saying he and wife Lauren Hashian "had a lot of these conversations at home, at the kitchen island late at night when the babies are asleep."
"The challenge was, okay, let’s remember, though, what’s going to be beyond this opening weekend," the Black Adam star recalled. "Let’s remember what’s happening right now and the noise that’s happening right now. If you love it, great. If you don’t, no problem." What "really mattered," he noted, was that "the culture really stood up."
Explaining that Moana's Polynesian-inspired world is "why the movie was made," Johnson shared, "Because of me and our kids who can now look at the big screen and go, 'That’s us for the first time on a big screen. That’s us up there. How cool is that?'"
The writing may have been on the wall for Moana from the start. Set photos of Johnson wearing a muscle suit and wig were poorly received, as were the movie's trailers.
Ultimately, Moana was another blow to Johnson after what's proven a challenging few years. NBC cancelled Young Rock; his football league, the XFL, crashed and burned; Black Adam was a flop (as was his attempt to take over DC); and he failed to secure so much as an Oscar nomination for The Smashing Machine.
He also upset a lot of WWE fans with his return to the company and subsequent departure, as the second it looked like he might be an awards contender, he dropped pro wrestling like it was hot. Now, the actor is hoping to rebound with this December's Jumanji: Open World, a movie that could get steamrolled by Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Part Three.
In Moana, Disney’s live-action reimagining of the beloved Oscar-nominated animated adventure, Moana answers the Ocean’s call and, for the first time, voyages beyond the reef of her island of Motunui with the infamous demigod Maui on an unforgettable journey to restore prosperity to her people.
Moana's cast is led by Dwayne Johnson, Catherine Laga'aia, Rena Owen, John Tui, Frankie Adams, and Jemaine Clement. The film is directed by Emmy and Tony Award winner Thomas Kail (Hamilton).
Moana is now playing in theaters.