"Moana" Earns Disney Second Worst Live-Action Opening Weekend
This post will continue to be updated as we get more "Moana" box office numbers.
Disney's live-action adaptations have proven to be juggernauts at the box office, but the same might not be true for Moana as the initial numbers start to come in.
Update (Sunday, July 12th):
- While we knew the box office tides were looking low for Disney's live-action Moana, numbers, both domestically and internationally, have proved to be disappointing.
- Reported by Deadline, Moana raked in a mere $43 million domestically during its opening weekend, $17 million short of the expected $60 million.
- This is the second worst theatrical opening for a Disney live-action, sitting just $800K ahead of Disney's highly controversial live-action failure Snow White.
- It comes as a surprise to many that Moana just couldn't beat the rough waters, with the franchise being one of the largest for Disney's modern era.
- To Moana's credit, the live-action remake arrives at a highly competitive time for families at the box office, with the recent releases of Pixar's Toy Story 5 and Illumination's Monsters & Minions.
- The film has the potential to ride a moderate wave through the summer, but with the arrival of Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey this weekend and July 31st's Spider-Man: Brand New Day, it may be hard for Moana to find it's sea legs.
- Discourse around the film has been relatively neutral to negative, as fans continue to find themselves less than interested with Disney's live-action remakes.
- While Moana is being criticized for its nearly scene-for-scene adaptation, many of Disney's live-action risks have failed to pay off.
- Over the past few years, Disney's live-action remakes have been less consistent with their box office numbers.
- When Disney began remaking their hit animated films, the releases were printing money for the House of Mouse.
- However, with a general fatigue from rehashed stories in the movie industry, it is clear that audiences are not being drawn in by pure IP power the way they used to.
- Snow White in particular was an approximately $170 million loss for Disney, and with Moana failing to have an impactful opening, this could be a pretty short journey for the film at the theaters.
- Lilo & Stitch pulled in over a billion last summer, and I'm sure Disney hoped that Moana would do the same.
- But even that film was met with criticism for several major changes to the plot and characters that many found to contradict the themes of the original film.
- Worldwide, Moana didn't even touch the $100 million mark, hitting just $95 million of the expected $130 million.
- Maybe it's time we allow animated films to stand on their own again
What's Happening:
- Deadline reports that Disney's live-action adaptation of Moana brought in $4.5 million in previews from Thursday showtimes after 2:00 p.m.
- Disney was hoping for a $60 million start for Moana, but that projection has been pushed down to a projection in the high $40 million range.
- It should be noted that Moana 2 just two years ago went on to gross over $1 billion at the box office, so perhaps there is some franchise fatigue at play here.
- Moana 2 grossed $13.8 million on its Tuesday preview day before opening for Thanksgiving weekend in 2024, grossing $139.7 million over three days.
- Prior to marketing costs, the live-action Moana reportedly cost $250 million.
- Critical reception on Rotten Tomatoes has also been low, currently at 35%, putting it below other live-action adaptations like Snow White (39%), Aladdin (57%) and Dumbo (46%).
- Regardless, more Moana is on the way – as Dwayne Johnson recently confirmed that Moana 3 is in development.
- Moana is now playing in theaters everywhere. Be sure to read Alex's review of the remake, which struggles to find a reason to exist.
More Disney Movie News:
- A catchy new tune from Descendants: Wicked Wonderland is now available to stream on most major platforms.
- Cheetahlicious! Get excited, because another early 2000s Disney Channel favorite is coming back for another go – The Cheetah Girls!
- Fireworks lit up the night sky at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles for the world premiere of the live-action Moana.
- Godzilla Minus One director Takashi Yamazaki is taking his latest epic, Nue, to 20th Century Studios.