Thomas Kail To Direct Live-Action ‘Moana’ for Disney
Hamilton director Thomas Kail has been tapped to direct the upcoming live-action remake of Moana.
The news comes to us from The Hollywood Reporter, just a few weeks after Disney officially announced the new movie was happening, with Dwayne Johnson attached to reprise his role as Maui. Jared Bush, who wrote the original film, co-wrote the script of the remake with Dana Ledoux Miller. Production is set to begin in October in Hawaii. Johnson will also be producing via Seven Bucks Productions, along with Dany García and Hiram García. Beau Flynn is also producing through Flynn Picture Co.
As far as the titular character goes, Auli‘i Cravalho, who voiced Moana in the 2016 feature, will executive produce via Flynn Picture Co., along with Scott Sheldon. However, she’s already confirmed she will not be reprising her role. A hunt for the young Polynesian actress to play the part is surely underway. Keeping up with the themes of the original, the live-action remake will explore the Pacific Islands and their cultures, honoring their myths and traditions — it’s also not the only Hawaii-shot live-action remake Disney has in the works, as Lilo and Stitch is currently in production there. The report also comes on the heels of Universal casting the two titular roles for their live-action remake of How to Train Your Dragon.
Disney veterans John Musker and Ron Clements co-directed the animated feature. There’s no word yet on Lin Manuel Miranda’s participation; he was heavily involved in the music of the original, which included two of the most iconic tunes from Disney Animation in the 2010s, “How Far I’ll Go”, which received an Oscar nomination, and Johnson’s “You’re Welcome”.
Kail is the Tony Award-winning director behind Hamilton, so he definitely has some experience collaborating with Lin Manuel Miranda. He also has a small TV resumé, most recently with two episodes of Hulu’s Up Here.
No release date has been set.
Miguel Fernández is a Spanish student that has movies as his second passion in life. His favorite movie of all time is The Lord of the Rings, but he is also a huge Star Wars fan. However, fantasy movies are not his only cup of tea, as authors like Scorsese, Fincher, Kubrick or Hitchcock have been an obsession for him since he started to understand the language of filmmaking. He is that guy who will watch a black and white movie, just because it is in black and white.
