If you want a predictable, cinematic experience with characters you know wayfinding through a familiar story, the “live-action” “Moana” (2026) is the movie for you. Otherwise, wait for streaming or pass.
Much of the story sticks closely to the 2016 animated version. Newcomer Catherine Laga’aia shines as Moana. There are slight changes here and there. In all fairness, the changes mostly made sense for the live-action version of the movie… except for one egregious addition. In one scene, Dwayne Johnson as Maui peels a banana with his teeth. Everything is fine…Moana and Maui are bantering…and then, bam! Maui uses his teeth to peel open a banana. What? How did this come about? Is this what the Rock is cooking? I am convinced that most reviewers who missed this detail wanted to dive straight into bashing the latest live-action Disney cash grab and didn’t watch the movie.
Outside of finding a third way to open a banana, Dwayne Johnson does rock the Maui wig. However, his body looks disproportionate at times. Te Fiti’s CGI also seemed incomplete and, dare I say, rushed.
Nevertheless, the CGI is realistic to kids. In the theater I attended, several kids aged about 5 and under cried whenever Te Kā appeared, during storms, and other visually frightening scenes. Part of it has to do with the movie theater’s surround sound system, especially the storms. The scared reactions will likely be diminished on a smaller screen.
Two new moments will go over kids’ heads, but are noteworthy for parents. The first involves Moana yelling, “Son of a…” while Maui closes her in the cave at the end of “You’re Welcome” and Maui responding, “Beach.” The second is Maui flicking his little Maui tattoo into a “dark place,” and it is implied that the tattoo is going into the depths of Maui’s rear end.
Since the movie stuck so close to the themes and plot of the 2016 animated film, the analysis below of God shining through the story can be applied to both. For simplicity’s sake, the actors cited in parentheses are from the 2026 movie.
And, yes. While “Moana” is rooted in Polynesian mythology, many of its themes can still be used as points of reflection in light of Catholic teaching.
Identity and Vocation
The central theme of “Moana” is the title character discovering who she is meant to be. Throughout her upbringing, Moana is torn between being drawn to the sea and not being allowed to leave the island. The latter is driven by her father’s, Chief Tui (John Tui), fear of anyone drowning in the open sea, an event that happened to his cousin (a change from his best friend in the animated movie) when they sailed beyond the reef. She is confused by her desire to sail into treacherous waters until her grandma Tala (Rena Owen) shows her that the sea chose her to find Maui, board her boat, and restore the heart of Te Fiti. When crops start decaying and fish leave the safe waters, it becomes clear to her that she must sail beyond the reef to save her people.
Her journey beyond the reef is not born out of selfishness, but out of selflessly risking her life to save her people. Though she doesn’t know anything about sailing, she still goes. This relates to a common phrase used to encourage the faithful in their evangelization and vocational efforts: “God doesn’t call the qualified; He qualifies the called.”
Regardless of our circumstances, we all share the universal call to holiness. The 12 apostles came from backgrounds not normally equipped to change the world, and yet they did. Time and again, Jesus chooses men and women from ordinary backgrounds to spread his message of Salvation. To keep the analogy close to “Moana,” Sts. Peter, Andrew, James, and John were simple fishermen called by Jesus to become fishers of men (Matthew 4, Mark 1, and Luke 5).
By answering her call and living out her vocation as a voyager, Moana not only returns the heart to Te Fiti but also helps others rediscover who they were created to be. Maui learns he was made a demigod, not to do mighty deeds for recognition, but because he has a heart for humanity. The villagers of Motunui learn they are not meant solely to be islanders, but voyagers as well. With her heart restored, Te Fiti lives out her calling as a goddess of creation.
When we choose to say “yes” to God and witness to his Glory with whatever lifelong or occupational vocation he calls us to, it provides others with the opportunity to do the same.
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Discipleship
One character strength that was fleshed out more in the live-action movie was Moana’s desire to master skills through apprenticeship. During the song “Where You Are,” Moana takes care to learn the various crafts of her people. Her formation as a leader is rooted in gaining intimate knowledge of the daily struggles and joys the villagers encounter, and not seeing any of their duties as less than. This enhances the later scenes of Maui teaching her to way-find and gives credence to her ability to master her canoe skills quickly on the way to Te Fiti.
This form of discipleship is central to what makes Moana a compelling character. She does not want to be defined purely by her birthright, but by genuinely understanding the best ways to serve her people. This discipleship enables her to cultivate a genuine love for her people, a love that leads her to choose to sail into dangerous waters because it is what they need to survive and thrive.
In reality, we can see our daily work not merely as a means to an end, but as a path to sanctity. Moana’s approach to discipleship is reminiscent of St. Josemaría Escrivá’s point 489 in his book The Way, “It is in the simplicity of your ordinary work, in the monotonous details of each day, that you have to find the secret, which is hidden from so many, of something great and new: Love.” Devotees of St. Therese of Lisieux can make the association to her “Little Way” or, as St. Teresa of Calcutta (Mother Teresa) put it, “doing small acts with great love.”
Our Eternal King, Jesus Christ, knew the importance of apprenticeship. Before his public ministry, Jesus apprenticed as a carpenter under his foster father, St. Joseph. He did not come into this world in a grandiose way. He did not flaunt his Sovereignty over the people. He lived as one of us. He worked as one of us. He showed his humanity, humility, and ways of discipleship. It is both Moana’s and Jesus’s dedication to performing ordinary works with great love that lays the foundation for their great actions. Moana risks her life to restore the heart of Te Fiti and save her people from destruction. Jesus, with his Sacred Heart, submitted to death by crucifixion and rose on the third day to restore our relationship with God and open up the gates of Heaven for us.
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Communion of Saints
When Moana is thwarted by Te Kā and Maui leaves discouraged, it appears all is lost. While Moana is experiencing this dark night of the soul, the spirit of her deceased grandma comes to her side. In Moana and Tala’s duet in “I Am Moana (Song of the Ancestors),” Moana sees the spirit of her ancestor Matai Vasa pass by and acknowledge her. These interactions give Moana the encouragement she needs to put her failure behind her and sail bravely against Te Kā one more time.
While this is not exactly how the intercession of the saints works, it did remind me of one of my go-to verses from the New Testament, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfecter of faith” (Hebrews 12:1-2a).
The saints can provide guidance and inspiration for our own spiritual journey. They help us hope in the promise of eternal life in times of hardship and are our friends in Heaven who offer to God the prayers of us on Earth.
As a side note, Maui mentions earlier in the live-action version that the necklace Moana wears once belonged to Matai Vasa. This relic of the past has tied her deeper to her ancestors than she ever knew. In the life of the Church, the faithful venerate relics to honor the holiness of saints, provide tangible reminders of their lives, and inspire a closer relationship to God.
Final Thoughts
While many will understandably skip “Moana” (2026) in theaters, it is one of the more faithful live-action adaptations of Disney’s animated movies.
The movie is receiving a lot of hate because of its proximity to the release of the animated movie and its sequel. I predict houses with Disney+ will be streaming it in abundance due to the demand from children. Since the most obscene part of the plot involves peeling a banana with teeth, there is not much reason to deny requests from children to watch it at home except for personal principles.
Whether you watch the animated, live-action, or neither version of Moana, you can always follow the way, the truth, and the life: Jesus Christ.
