Auli’i Cravalho promises Moana 2 will be “so special” — although it’s still not completed as its release date inches closer.
“We aren’t done with the film yet, so we’re still working on it. We will get it to you in November,” Cravalho, 23, exclusively tells Us Weekly while promoting Coral Reef Awareness Week, which kicked off on Monday, July 15.
The actress said that it was “such a joy” to return to play the title character, adding, “But I love the team, they’re so passionate. They’re so knowledgeable about Polynesian culture, but also, how we … want to grow.”
The original Moana film, released in 2016, followed the 16-year-old daughter of Chief Tui (Temuera Morrison) and Sina (Nicole Scherzinger) as she leaves her island of Motunui to find demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson) and forces him to restore the heart of Te Fiti. In the much-anticipated sequel, Moana is older and receives an unexpected call from her wayfinding ancestors, forcing her to reunite with Maui, as well as old and new friends.
Moana’s development and new journey helped connect Cravalho even more to the character.
“I am turning 24 this year and getting to come back to this character has been really lovely,” Cravalho continues. “I get to sing songs that are Disney-fied, but again, there’s also growth in a character and I think it’s so special that for the first time we get to see a Disney princess grow up.”
While the actress can’t divulge much about the plot because she feels “Mickey Mouse breathing down my neck,” she teases that the film is destined to be “great” because of the team working behind the scenes on the project.
“We have a wonderful music team, Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear. We have our incredible creative writing team behind it as well,” Cravalho adds. “I can’t wait for it to come out.”
Cravalho has felt a close connection to Moana, especially considering she was just a teen when she landed the part of a lifetime.
“It’s no doubt that that role changed my life. I was cast when I was 14. It came out the day after my 16th birthday. Moa was 16 in our original film, and it did feel like kismet,” Cravalho recalls. “I attended an all-Hawaiian school where they give preference to those of Hawaiian ancestry. So I didn’t read Catcher in the Rye growing up. I read Hawaiian. And that culture is just something that’s really ingrained in me, and I’m really grateful for it because that’s my foundation and I never have to worry about speaking on these issues and speaking on these topics because they do flow naturally through me. I am part of Gen Z, I feel like I’m inheriting a world that’s on fire. Anytime I get to talk about dilution to a problem, I will.”
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Although Cravalho encompasses Moana, she passed on playing the character in the live-action adaptation currently in the works to give more opportunities to other actors.
“I attend a lot of Asian American Pacific Islander events. There are very few Pacific Islanders. I also love this story. First and foremost, I love Moa. I love what she represents. I love what she represents at large [and] also to the culture. And I want to see more Pacific Islanders in this industry,” Cravalho explains. “I’m lonely at my table, so I honestly have no ego in passing that baton or passing that ore to the next young woman of Pacific Island descent. And I also am new to the producing world, and as much as I enjoy on-camera roles.”
Auli’i Cravalho Steve Granitz/FilmMagic
She continues, “I’m also excited to get behind the camera and see how the sausage is made … so to speak. There are so many small details and so many wonderful people that are behind the camera that make these incredible movies and shows work. So I get to be humble and say, I know nothing about this, please teach me. And thankfully the studio has been kind enough to include me in the process.”
The role of Moana has been passed to Catherine Laga’aia for the upcoming adaptation, which also stars Johnson, 52, reviving his character, along with John Tui, Frankie Adams and Rena Owen.
When asked if she’s given Laga’aia, 17, any advice for the role, Cravalho says she wants her predecessor to “make it all her own.”
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“She’s so special. She’s so smart. She’s so beautiful. I really don’t feel like I need to give her too many tips because she’s also of Polynesian descent. She gets it,” Cravalho says of Laga’aia. “She knows exactly how much this means. So I’m just excited to see her grow and to see her shine and she’s already doing such a wonderful job.”
Cravalho is extremely passionate about her heritage, and that includes protecting marine ecosystems, especially in her native Hawaii. She’s partnered with SHEBA premium cat food and Hawaiian nonprofit Kuleana Coral Reefs to help raise awareness of the need to restore and protect Hawaii’s reefs.
“This video series of growing Hope in Hawaii is something that’s really precious because it talks about giving back to the ocean that has given so much,” the actress says of the videos she made in partnership with the Sheba Hope Grows program to restore coral reefs around the globe. “I’m excited to be partnering with them again as well as Cool Coral, which is our wonderful people on the ground in Hawaii doing the work. It’s really a shoutout to them and to all the coral restoration efforts around the world.”
Reporting by Christina Garibaldi