- Moana had a disappointing weekend at the box office, only making $95 million from its huge $250 million budget
- The live action remake currently sits at 33% on Rotten Tomatoes
- Fans have criticized Moana for being an exact replica of the beloved animated movie
Moana set sail for theaters recently, but its opening weekend was a poor performance for one of July’s biggest new movies.
The original Moana movie was a huge success for Disney, bringing in $687.2 million at the global box office. But based on the opening weekend, it doesn’t feel like the 2026 live action remake will be following in its footsteps.
At the time of writing, the new Moana has only made $95 million on its huge $250 million budget, making it one of Disney’s poorest performing movies.
It has also received a disappointing Rotten Tomatoes score of 33%, with its critics consensus saying: “The sea calls to no one in this underwhelming new version of Moana, an endeavor that solidifies its animated predecessor as the superior adventure.”
Moana has been branded ‘lifeless’ by viewers
Many fans of the original Moana movie have expressed their disappointment, describing the new live action version as being flat and a “carbon copy” of the original, per this scathing review by Associated Press.
Fans on X have also had a lot to say, with some wonder what the point in making a live action movie for Moana was. There’s been plenty of backlash, making it a disappointing entry into Disney’s library.
The original Moana is incredible. I have it on Blu-ray.This live-action remake (which is also mostly animated) makes no sense to me, not from an artistic reasoning, nor from a consumer standpoint.I mean, money is the ultimate motivation I suppose, but who wants a lesser… https://t.co/UtmsmHm2p7July 12, 2026
Another X user commented on how their main issue was the lack of quality, noting that nothing about the Moana live action was better than the original. They also cited The Lion King and Aladdin as having “new elements that justified their existence”, but claimed that Moana did not have this.
My main issue with Disney Live-Action remakes isnt how lazy they are but how much the quality overall has dipped. Like at least with Lion King and Aladdin, they’re technical marvels with new elements that justified their existence, what does Moana have that’s better the original? https://t.co/8nAg33HGOFJuly 12, 2026
Moana is the first time theyve done a live action remake of a movie *I* love and it makes me so depressed why is it so lifelessJuly 2, 2026
Finally, another user pointed out that they’d rather watch the Snow White remake over Moana. Snow White also underperformed at the box office, but has a slightly higher Rotten Tomatoes score of 39%.
I wouldn’t go so far as to say anyone owes the SNOW WHITE remake an apology but I would 100% watch it again over ever looking at MOANA ’26 a second time. A truly dispiriting experience, flat and lifeless. Better than that LION KING movie though.July 8, 2026
If you want to see for yourself, Moana is now playing in theaters globally. But judging by initial reports, you might want to head to Disney+ to check out the original, and it’s admittedly very good sequel, Moana 2.
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lucy.buglass@futurenet.com (Lucy Buglass)
