In the first full trailer for Moana 2, Moana (Auli’i Cravalho) and demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson) are back in full force. The new look was unveiled to thunderous applause at D23 Friday, where Johnson and Cravalho were onhand for a musical performance from the movie.
“Maui is singing again. Singing in keys that don’t exist. And my hair looks fantastic in Moana 2,” Johnson told the crowd.
Fellow returning voice performers Temuera Morrison, Nicole Scherzinger and Alan Tudyk are also among the cast for the movie.
David Derrick Jr. and Jason Hand direct the movie that was originally slated as a Disney+ series before Disney’s chief Bob Iger revealed that the production would be changing course to a full-fledged feature film sequel.
A teaser trailer was released earlier this year, and the directors debuted footage at the Annecy Animation festival. At the time, Derrick offered of the film’s plot: “We begin our story with Moana, three years after the first film. She’s exploring the seas, searching for new islands, mapping the ocean, hoping to find other people. As the people of Motunui have not seen anyone for generations, Moana knows that the ocean connects us.”
The trailer’s launch at D23 in Anaheim coincided with the Mouse House debuted first looks at several other upcoming films. The studio is also in production on a live-action Moana movie, due out in 2026 from director Thomas Kail, that will see Johnson also play Maui and newcomer Catherine Laga‘aia set to play Moana.
