It seems voice recording work is underway on the animated Moana sequel, which is set to hit theaters on November 27, 2024.
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson recently shared some Instagram and X/Twitter posts of his Maui recording sessions, sharing, "So much fun becoming MAUI again - a character that changed my life in many ways - including the character of MAUI being inspired by my late grandfather, High Chief Peter Maivia."
"The Polynesian cultural significance of the role and our story has touched families around the world and has easily become one of my truest honors to bring to life and share. Excited for you and your families around the world to join us on this journey."
In addition to Johnson, Auliʻi Cravalho will also return to voice the titular heroine, Moana.
In his feature film debut, David G. Derrick Jr. (Raya and the Last Dragon-storyboard artist, The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes-storyboard artist) wrote the script and is also directing.
Animation took place in Walt Disney Animation Studios' Vancouver facility rather than its Burbank site.
In other Moana news, a live-action film is also in development with the Rock set to also play Maui. Given her age, Auliʻi Cravalho will not be playing Moana in the live-action remake but fans are campaigning to have her play the goddess Te Fiti.
Johnson recently teased that they've found an actress to play Moana in the live-action remake and that the studio is just waiting for the proper time to make the announcement.
In regards to the global casting search, Johnson teased, "One of the exciting things about that was actually finding our Moana and how exciting that has been. The global search to find our Moana -- which -- between you and I, we found her -- not gonna tell you yet. [It's] very exciting."
Released in 2016, Moana went on to gross $682 million worldwide from a production budget of $150 million. It's also one of the most popular streaming titles on Disney+.
The live-action Moana movie was originally slated for release on June 27, 2025 but was pushed back to July 10, 2026, due to the release of Moana 2.