Live-action remake of 'Moana' gets ravaged by critics in latest blow to Disney Studios

Who was asking for this? That's become the most repeated response to most new release movies and trailers, as Hollywood and the entertainment industry seem to be rapidly running out of ideas or creativity.

The latest example? The tepid response to The Walt Disney Company's latest attempt at a "live-action" remake of one of their animated films, "Moana."

The original "Moana" was widely enjoyed by critics and audiences, with popular songs that are still frequently played today, even as the film approaches its 10-year anniversary. Its animation style was also praised for the colorful, lush representation of a Pacific island. While it didn't reinvent the wheel, there was some level of creativity and originality to the presentation of a familiar coming of age story.

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Unsurprisingly, it was a huge financial success. It grossed $248.7 million at the domestic box office, adding a whopping $394 million internationally. That $643 million total adjusted for inflation is now nearly $900 million.

And Disney, never one to leave well enough alone, didn't. Fast-forward to 2026, and trailers for the live-action remake of "Moana" hit theaters and the internet to well, mixed reactions would be an understatement. Instead of the vivid, colorful world of the animated film, every background seemed washed out, desaturated, and uninteresting. Dwayne Johnson, reprising his role as Maui, wore a wig that was comically, laughably amateurish.

Even in just two minute increments, it was clear and obvious that most people involved in the production had little interest in it. Still, small sample sizes can be deceiving, raising hopes that it might make for a better film than trailer. Yet now that its July 10 release date is approaching, the first critical reviews have been published. And... pretty much confirmed everyone's worst fears.

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It debuted on Rotten Tomatoes with just a 38% positive rating, with many top critics issuing similarly negative reviews. Robbie Collins from The Telegraph summed it up by comparing it to AI-generated content: "Disney’s awful live-action Moana could have been made by a ChatGPT prompt."

The Associated Press review from Jake Coyle roasts Johnson's "Fabio hair," with the opening paragraph describing it as "purposeless."

"Say what you will about them," he writes. "But the  Disney live-action remakes have at least given us a choice. Which would you rather see? A spirited, soaring, animated 'Moana,' or a purposeless remake featuring Dwayne Johnson with Fabio hair?"

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Others called it "pointless," "lifeless," or compared it to the "uncanny valley" effect when video games become too realistic. Not what you want to hear if you're Disney.

But therein lies the problem. Major studios, particularly modern Disney, have mostly abandoned any pretense of creativity or originality. They're happy to rehash the same tired formula, as long as it makes a profit. For the first few remakes, it worked. Audiences, though, quickly caught on that the level of quality in films like the live-action "Beauty and the Beast" or "The Lion King" were far below that of the animated classics. The choice becomes spending money on going to the theater to see a worse version of a movie you've seen many times before.

Disney may still sell enough tickets to turn a profit on "Moana." But based on the reactions we've seen, the live-action remake well might be drying up sooner rather than later.