Disney's Live-Action Moana Faces $100 Million Loss

Walt Disney Pictures is facing a significant financial setback as its live-action adaptation of Moana underperformed during its opening weekend, with projections indicating a loss of at least $100 million USD. The film garnered only $43 million USD domestically and $52 million USD internationally, resulting in a global debut of approximately $95 million USD. This performance falls far short of expectations, especially considering the film's substantial $250 million USD production budget and an estimated $120 million USD marketing expenditure.

Industry analysts are now questioning the viability of Disney's strategy to rapidly remake relatively recent animated successes into live-action features. The commercial failure of "Moana" mirrors the disappointing performance of "Snow White" in 2025, suggesting a growing audience fatigue with adaptations of animated films that are less than a decade old. Unlike earlier remakes such as "Lilo & Stitch" or "Aladdin," which achieved billion-dollar box office success, "Moana" is tracking towards a considerable deficit.

The live-action "Moana," directed by Thomas Kail and starring Catherine Laga'aia alongside Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson reprising his role as Maui, opened in 3,875 theaters. The original animated "Moana," released in 2016, has remained a popular cultural touchstone, yet this direct theatrical remake did not resonate with family audiences as anticipated. This outcome presents a considerable challenge for Disney's future slate of planned remakes, including "Tangled."