On Wednesday, November 27, Disney will put its latest highly-anticipated animated sequel out onto the cinema seas with Moana 2, which charts a new course for our heroine and her demigod pal Maui (voice again by Auli’i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson, respectively) as they square up against a vengeful deity (Awhimai Fraser) on a mission to reunite the peoples of Polynesia.
The musical family adventure is directed by David Derrick Jr., Jason Hand and Dana Ledoux Miller, written by Jared Bush and Miller, produced by Christina Chen and Yvett Merino and executive produced by Jennifer Lee, Bush and Johnson.
The film is sailing into its holiday release window with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 69% (67 critics’ reviews), and a 57 on MetaCritic (31 critics’ reviews). Cinephiles found that Moana 2 fell short of the original 2016 film’s charms, while acknowledging the new adventure has plenty of kid appeal with stunning animation, action, comedy and original songs (courtesy of Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear).
Despite a mixed reception from critics, with roiling fan excitement for the sequel, Moana 2 is sure to make a splash at the box office over the Thanksgiving weekend, and industry watchers estimate a $225+ million global opening. The pic set a new record for first-day ticket pre-sales for an animated feature this year on Fandango, surpassing all-time top-grossing toon Inside Out 2.
Here’s what some of the critics are saying:
“Much of the storytelling and world-building in Moana 2 is indeed clever, the rare sequel that expands on its original bent in ways that genuinely make sense … And while Moana 2 might not be rife with all the instant hits of the first film, there are plenty of [original song] bangers on offer here … It’s always a tough ask to improve upon an original, but Moana 2 is a sprightly addition to this sea-faring legacy.”
— Kate Erbland, IndieWire
“There’s nothing particularly terrible about Moana 2, but the fact that it’s necessary to write ‘there’s nothing particularly terrible about Moana 2’ means something still went wrong … One gets the sense that Moana 2 is mostly a set-up for future films in the series. It’s an intellectual property exploitation starter kit, a humdrum act of corporate mandate instead of a story that needed to be told.”
— William Bibbiani, The Wrap
“Moana 2 is an okay movie, an above-average kiddie roller-coaster, and a piece of pure product in a way that the first Moana, at its best, transcended. The new movie wears you down to win you over; it’s a just efficient enough delivery system for follow-your-dreams inspiration to be a major holiday hit. ”
— Owen Gleiberman, Variety
“One can’t help but feel like more time or a more episodic approach might have helped. [AM editor’s note: The film was originally planned as a series.] … Scaling up does pay off in the visuals, however. The sea has never looked so menacing, and the deeper Moana and company head into the its uncharted territory, the more threatening the environment becomes. Intense waterspouts spin uncontrollably atop the water, threatening to wreck anything in its path. Glowing, eel-like leviathan’s leap through the air before trying to swallow Moana’s humble boat. Facing these titanic forces, the gang embraces new ways of working together. Even when Moana 2 falters, their courage remains a steady source of inspiration.”
— Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter
“The plot whips along at a rate of knots, packing in action sequences and heart-soaring songs … The humor is pitched perfectly for its all-ages audience, with plenty of fart jokes interspersed with anachronistic quips about butt dials … The animation is even more beautiful, allowing you to see every grain of sand and drop of ocean spray. With artistry this good, it begs the question for why a live-action remake (billed for a 2026 release) is needed at all.”
— India Block, The London Evening Standard (U.K.)
“At the very least, Moana 2 soars when it gets down to the business of being a large-scale seafaring epic. The first film’s delightful Kakamora tribe gets a little more backstory, and so its members become more than just an excuse for extremely fun Mad Max-style piracy on the open seas. Their temporary alliance with Moana and her crew to kill a clam the size of an island results in one hell of a thrilling action beat, which is bested later by the finale at the heart of a cursed lightning storm, with our heroes beset on all sides by vicious sea creatures. Both sequences are breathtakingly animated, and awash in the drama and tension the film desperately needs.”
— Justin Clark, Slant Magazine
