Moana Live-Action Opens July 10 - $4.5M Previews, $250M Budget, Mixed Reviews
Disney's live-action Moana hits theaters July 10, 2026. Dwayne Johnson as Maui, Catherine Laga'aia as Moana. $4.5M Thursday previews, tracking $60-65M opening. Box office test.
Disney just put Moana back in theaters - this time for real.
The live-action remake opened July 10, 2026, less than two years after Moana 2 crossed $1 billion. Dwayne Johnson returns as Maui. Newcomer Catherine Laga’aia plays Moana. Director: Thomas Kail (Hamilton on Broadway).
Thursday previews: $4.5 million from about 3,900 screens. Tracking for opening weekend: $60-65 million domestic. Production budget: $250 million.
Critics? Mixed to negative. Many called it an unnecessary remake. Families will decide at the ticket booth.
The numbers so far
| Metric | Figure |
|---|---|
| Release | July 10, 2026 |
| Thursday previews | $4.5M |
| Opening weekend track | $60-65M (US) |
| Global opening track | ~$130M |
| Budget | $250M |
| Runtime | 115 minutes (PG) |
| Screens (NA) | ~3,900 |
For context: the 2016 animated Moana opened to $82M over five Thanksgiving days and finished at $643M worldwide. Moana 2 (2024) opened to $225M domestic over five days and passed $1B global.
This remake is tracking for Disney’s lowest live-action global opening in recent memory - and still needs weeks of family traffic to justify the spend.
Who is in it?
| Role | Actor |
|---|---|
| Maui | Dwayne Johnson |
| Moana | Catherine Laga’aia |
| Also | Rena Owen, John Tui, Frankie Adams, Jemaine Clement |
Johnson also produces. Songs again from Lin-Manuel Miranda, Opetaia Foa’i, and Mark Mancina - with new music alongside the hits.
Why the timing is weird
Moana 2 was still fresh. Remakes usually wait decades. Johnson pushed back at the premiere:
“I never bought into this idea - you have to wait 20 years, you have to wait 30 years, it’s too soon.”
He argued the themes work better with a real young girl on screen. Disney is betting families agree - and that summer needs another big PG title between Toy Story 5 and the rest of the slate.
Also opening the same day: Evil Dead Burn (Warner Bros.) - sixth film in the horror franchise.
The box office test
$250M budget means Moana cannot just open and fade. It needs:
- strong family weekends through July
- international legs
- repeat visits for the songs
Reviews will not help much if they stay cold. Word of mouth from kids might. That is the Disney remake playbook - and this one is the first big stress test of 2026 summer for the studio’s live-action machine after Lilo & Stitch hit big in 2025.
FAQ
When does live-action Moana come out? July 10, 2026 in the US.
Who plays Moana? Catherine Laga’aia. Dwayne Johnson is Maui.
How much did it make in previews? $4.5 million on Thursday night.
Is it getting good reviews? Mostly mixed to negative so far - many critics call it unnecessary.
In short
- Live-action Moana - out July 10
- $4.5M previews, $60-65M weekend track
- $250M budget - needs legs
- Johnson + Laga’aia + Thomas Kail
- Remake arrives too soon for some - not soon enough for Disney’s calendar
The ocean called. Disney answered with a remake. Now the box office decides if anyone wanted to hear it again this soon.