The monster hit that Moana 2 has been, it’s already among the top-grossing films of the year in less than a week of release. The animated sequel broke records in its extended five-day debut, grossing an astounding $225 million over the Thanksgiving period and pushing the theatrical market to over $400 million during the lucrative frame. The movie is now on the verge of passing a very important benchmark, ahead of its second weekend of release.
With $243 million in the bank so far at the domestic box office, Moana 2 is just $5 million shy of overtaking its predecessor, Moana. Released in 2016, the original film concluded its domestic run with $248 million, and its worldwide run with around $690 million. Directed by Ron Clements and John Musker, the first Moana was critically acclaimed, scoring a 96% approval rating on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes and earning an Oscar nomination in the Best Animated Feature category.
While Moana 2 is almost definitely poised to become a bigger hit — it’s expected to pass the coveted $1 billion mark in its global run — it appears to have received a more muted response from critics. Moana 2 holds a barely fresh 63% score on Rotten Tomatoes, but seems to be doing just fine with the audiences. Directed by David Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, and Dana Ledoux Miller, the movie holds an 87% audience score on RT, which suggests that it’ll continue performing well into the holidays.
The Two ‘Moana’ Movies Have Made More than $1 Billion Worldwide
It’s currently among the 35 highest-grossing animated movies of all time at the domestic box office, and will overtake the first Cars and Toy Story 2 as early as today. This year has been notable for the medium, with blockbusters such as Pixar’s Inside Out 2 ($652 million domestically), Illumination’s Despicable Me 4 ($361 million), and DreamWorks’ Kung Fu Panda 4 ($193 million). DreamWorks also had another wildcard hit this year in the form of The Wild Robot, which has grossed over $140 million domestically.
Curiously enough, Moana 2 was originally designed as a streaming series spin-off to the first film, but Disney re-evaluated the project at some point during its production. Featuring Auliʻi Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson in the central roles, Moana 2 is playing in theaters. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
Moana sets out on another daring voyage, venturing into uncharted territories to save her island from a looming ancient danger. Joined by the demigod Maui and her steadfast friends, she braves perilous seas and encounters new allies along the way. Her quest leads to revelations about her ancestors and deeper insights into her bond with the ocean.
- Director
- David G. Derrick Jr. , Jason Hand , Dana Ledoux Miller
- Cast
- Auli’i Cravalho , Dwayne Johnson , Alan Tudyk , Rachel House , Temuera Morrison , Nicole Scherzinger , Hualālai Chung , David Fane , Rose Matafeo , Awhimai Fraser , Gerald Ramsey , Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda
