Live-Action Moana Struggles at the Box Office, Echoing Last Year’s Snow White Remake Performance

Disney’s latest live-action adaptation, Moana, had a rough opening weekend, prompting industry insiders to dig deep for creative nautical terms to describe its lackluster performance. The film “floundered,” “ran aground,” “sank,” and “failed to make a splash,” raking in just $43 million domestically and $52 million globally, a figure that closely mirrors last year’s disappointing Snow White remake.

Starring Dwayne Johnson and Catherine Laga’aia, Moana hit theaters on July 9. Expectations were set high, with Disney anticipating around $60 million in domestic earnings for its opening weekend. However, the film fell short of that target, which had already been revised down from an initial $75 million forecast.

To make matters worse, Moana’s $43 million debut is only slightly better than the previous year’s Snow White, which faced significant controversy and negative press before its release. That film managed to pull in $42.2 million domestically and $45 million worldwide during its opening weekend. In contrast, Moana, despite its star power and connection to a more recent animated hit, only edged out Snow White by a mere $1 million in the U.S. and performed similarly on the global stage.

Reports suggest that Moana could end up costing Disney between $100 to $125 million, assuming it reaches a global total of $250 million, which is possible but not guaranteed. The film’s budget, including marketing, was nearly $395 million.

So, what went wrong? Analysts point to a few key issues. One major factor is that the release came too soon after the success of Moana 2, as franchises typically thrive when there’s a build-up of demand for sequels or remakes.

Additionally, Disney found itself competing against its own releases. Toy Story 5 brought in another $45 million during Moana’s opening weekend, pushing its global total to $880 million. With families facing rising ticket prices, many opted for something new rather than a poorly reviewed remake of an animated classic that had just received a sequel.

“Disney knew when they rescheduled Moana that they had Moana 2 and Toy Story 5 in the mix; why they even considered a release date in 2026 is beyond me,” one insider remarked.

Currently, Disney has no new live-action projects lined up for 2027, leaving fans to wait until 2028 for the live-action sequel to Lilo and Stitch.