Of all Disney’s princesses via the years, Moana is definitely my favourite. And I’m not alone: Seven years after its launch, Moana was the most-streamed film of 2023 with a whopping 11.6 billion minutes watched!
With the sequel coming later this yr, I thought it might be enjoyable to take a deep dive within the beloved movie. So, listed below are 17 enjoyable information that modified how I view Moana:
1.
Originally, Disney deliberate for the film to concentrate on Maui, our favourite demigod. Moana was envisioned as a secondary character on a mission to rescue her love curiosity. Thankfully, that did not occur! The movie is far stronger as a journey of self-discovery.
2.
Directors Ron Clements and John Musker additionally co-directed one other Disney film set within the ocean: The Little Mermaid. And they included a small Easter egg throughout “You’re Welcome” — Flounder! You can spot him swimming with the opposite sea animals.
3.
Speaking of “You’re Welcome,” the tune was really purported to be sung by Moana as an alternative of Maui earlier than they’d nailed down the characters’ personalities. John advised Entertainment Weekly, “When she first met him, she idolized him, and when she came upon this down-and-out guy, this mope, she had to get him going and so she sang a song to him reminding him, ‘Don’t you know you did all these great things?'” Eventually, the group determined to show Maui into the assured demigod we all know and love in the present day. Lucky for us as that is Dwayne Johnson’s solely tune!
4.
Many members of the Disney group — together with administrators, animators, and producers — traveled throughout the Pacific on analysis journeys. They hung out within the villages, went crusing, and spoke to folks of all ages and backgrounds. An elder approached them and stated, “For years, we have been swallowed by your culture. For once, can you be swallowed by ours?” Whew, discuss highly effective! This caught with the group and have become their driving drive to dive deep into Pacific cultures.
5.
While on the journey, they have been moved by the message that the ocean shouldn’t be what separates the islands — it is what connects them. Pacific Islanders additionally emphasised the thought of nature being alive. This comes throughout all through the film, the place the ocean is a personality in its personal proper.
6.
Maui was initially purported to be bald like The Rock. But when Disney took early artwork to Polynesian cultural advisers, they weren’t followers. “The advisers said, ‘Maui isn’t bald. He has this long, rich hair that’s part of his mana (spiritual energy),'” Ron advised USA Today. “And we all said, ‘Okay, Maui will have hair.'”
7.
Auli’i Cravalho was the final woman seen by casting brokers on the final day of auditions. During the web callback session, the Disney group requested her to behave out her response if she landed the position earlier than telling her she really acquired it.
8.
Pua initially went on the complete journey with Moana. That would’ve been so enjoyable to see this cutie with a bigger position!
(*17*)
9.
Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote lots of the songs together with “How Far I’ll Go” and “You’re Welcome.” He labored on the Moana soundtrack throughout his Hamilton run and even turned to some costars like Phillipa Soo when recording demos.
10.
The film addressed a real-life historic occasion known as the Long Pause. People arrived within the Western Pacific Islands round 3,500 years in the past after which took an estimated 1,000-year-long break earlier than persevering with on to Eastern Polynesia. Though students have debated the explanation for the pause, it stays unknown. Moana defined it with Maui stealing the center of Te Fiti and the boats not returning, which sparked widespread concern of going past the reef.
11.
From the start, the administrators wished Moana to have a unique physique kind than earlier princesses. John advised BuzzFeed, “That was a deliberate attempt, partly inspired by wanting her to be different. And then we wanted her to be an action hero, capable of action. Even the visual development drawings we had done and stuff, based on drawings of people in the South Pacific…it just seemed right for this character to have her look like she could physically hold her own for what kind of stunts we wanted her to do, and the physicality of the role.”
12.
The administrators checked out The Lion King‘s template for musical success: composer Hans Zimmer, pop star Elton John, and South African producer Lebo M. They discovered an analogous system for Moana: composer Mark Mancina who labored on hits like Tarzan and Brother Bear, Lin-Manuel because the proficient celeb, and Opetaia Tavita Foa’i, a singer and songwriter who based the Pacific Islander band Te Vaka.
13.
Maui’s character was impressed by a mixture of Polynesian myths. While many islands have their very own variations of Maui, there are just a few widespread tales. He is usually credited with giving the data of fireside to people, slowing down the solar, and utilizing his hook to tug up the islands from the depths of the ocean. Some of the myths even made their method into the film.
14.
Maui additionally drew inspiration from one other supply. On Twitter, Dwayne wrote, “A lil’ @Disney gem of a secret, my character Maui was partly inspired by my late grandfather, High Chief Peter Maivia of Samoa. #grateful.”
15.
Hawaiian Airlines celebrated Disney’s first Polynesian princess by portray three of their planes. They additionally adorned the over-head compartments with Moana-themed decals.
16.
At Comic-Con, a Disney panel revealed that Heihei was a really completely different hen in earlier variations of the film. “Heihei the animal went through a bit of a character evolution,” author Jared Bush stated. “He started out as kind of a jerk. Heihei had a lot of attitude. Over the course of many different screenings, [we learned] the character wasn’t resonating. We started to change just one little thing about Heihei.”
17.
And lastly, Moana’s title is symbolic. The phrase moana really means ocean in lots of Polynesian languages. So when the ocean chooses her, it’s extremely becoming!
Know another enjoyable Moana information? LMK within the feedback beneath!
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