The live action version of Moana releases on Friday, July 10, and is currently sitting at a “rotten” score on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.

Rotten Tomatoes

While only 48 professional reviews are currently on Rotten Tomatoes for live action Moana, they are largely very negative. The movie currently has a 31% score, which is considered “rotten” as of the time of writing on July 8.

Some of the review one-liners on the site indicate that the film lacks the panache of the original. For instance, Jake Coyle of the Associated Press said: “All inventiveness has gone out to sea.” Tasha Robinson at Polygon noted: “Virtually every line, beat, and song in the new movie is identical to the 2016 version, apart from a few minor punch-ups or extra comedy tags here and there. There’s no artistic or aesthetic reason for this movie to exist.”

As of today, there are no audience reviews yet, so the Popcornmeter is blank. Time will tell if audiences disagree with the critics on this latest Disney live action remake.

Live Action Moana

In Moana, Disney’s live-action reimagining of the Oscar-nominated animated movie, Moana (Catherine Lagaʻaia) answers the Ocean’s call and voyages beyond the reef of her island of Motunui with the infamous demigod Maui (Johnson) on a journey to restore prosperity to her people.

The film is directed by Emmy and Tony Award winner Thomas Kail (Hamilton); produced by Johnson, Dany Garcia, Beau Flynn, Hiram Garcia, and Lin-Manuel Miranda; and executive produced by Kail, Scott Sheldon, Charles Newirth, and Auliʻi Cravalho (the original voice of Moana in the animated films Moana and Moana 2).

Moana features original songs by Miranda, Opetaia Foaʻi, and Mark Mancina, and an original score composed by Mancina.

According to Deadline, Disney’s live-action version of its 2016 animated film, Moana, is projected to have an $85 million opening weekend in North America when it opens on July 10. In comparison with other live-action films, Snow White (2025) projected a $50 million opening weekend and fell short of those predictions. Mufasa (2024) opened to a rocky start, with the film only grossing $35 million during its U.S. opening weekend, but remained steady, defying “flop” labels. Lilo and Stitch (2025) was by far the most successful in recent years, with an estimated $145.5 million opening weekend.

AMC theater treats and novelties, including a glow-in-the-dark Heart of Te Fiti bag charm, have been announced. A new original song titled “Along the Way” was also released by Disney.

Watch the final trailer below:

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