Moana 2 was released this past Wednesday, November 27th, 2024. The movie is a sequel to the 2016 Disney animated hit, Moana. Like the first, Moana 2 is set in ancient Polynesia and follows the adventures of the titular chief’s daughter, Moana, and a demigod named Maui.
While some directors and main-character actors stayed the same — such as Dwayne Johnson and Auliʻi Cravalho — a significant household name did not return for the sequel. Lin-Manuel Miranda, who was a substantial asset to Moana’s songwriting, was replaced by Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear.
Lin-Manuel Miranda is known worldwide for creating the Broadway musicals In the Heights and Hamilton, and the soundtracks for the animated films Moana, Vivo, and Encanto. In Moana, he is credited with the making of “Your Welcome” and “How Far I’ll Go,” both the top songs from the franchise.
Artists Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear replaced the famous songwriter for the new movie. They are the world’s youngest, at 26 and 23, and the first all-female composers to compose music for a Disney animated movie. They also received a Grammy for musical theater album in 2022, with “The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical” Although extremely talented, the duo has received backlash online for taking the place of Miranda, with critics stating that they did not capture the spirit of the first movie.
The new soundtrack features the songs “Tulou Tagaloa,” “We’re Back,” “Tuputupu (The Feast),” “Beyond,” “My Wish for You (Innocent Warrior),” “Finding The Way,” “What Could Be Better Than This?,” “Get Lost,” “Can I Get a Chee Hoo?” “Mana Vava’u,” “Beyond,” “Nuku O Kaiga,” “Finding the Way (Reprise),” “We Know the Way (Te Fenua te Malie),” “Beyond (End Credit Version),” We’re Back (Te Vaka Version).” “Beyond” is Moana’s main song throughout the movie.
Many viewers of the movie are upset as the new songs do not have the same catchy lyrics as the original. For example, a junior Jack MacLachlan recently saw the movie, “I liked the characters, but the songs were not easy to remember or sing like the ones from the first movie.” Critics also agree with this statement as Lovia Gyarkye, a Hollywood reporter shares, “Lin-Manuel Miranda’s absence is unfortunately felt.”
Despite some conversation around the songs of the new movie, it has still brought in mass amounts of viewers to theaters. In the past few days, Moana 2 has set a new record with 13.8 million dollars in preview sales and 28 million dollars on Thanksgiving alone. Sienna Powers, a sophomore at Hingham High School, says, “I have not seen Moana 2, but I’m planning on seeing it and I’m very excited!”
Moana 2 is a perfect family-friendly movie to watch, with family and friends during the holiday season. While there is controversy about the soundtrack, this could still be a movie to bring in profit for Disney and shed light on the work of Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear.
