Moana 2’s Movie Update Decision Proves Disney Doesn’t Understand Its Own Streaming Successes

The plan for Moana 2 has changed, and the adjustment suggests that the executives at Disney have overlooked a big reason for the first movie’s success on their streaming service. In the modern age, streaming figures are a hugely useful metric that can be used to justify continuing a franchise. However, the data needs to be contextualized, and any important factors need to be considered. For Moana 2, it would appear that Disney hasn’t taken everything into account.
2016’s Moana is one of the best animated Disney movies of the 21st century, with the adventure becoming an enormous success. With a live-action adaptation and animated sequel on the way, the franchise is finally expanding. While Moana 2 was originally intended to be a Disney+ show, the plan has been altered to allow the story to take place on the big screen instead. Although Moana was a triumph no matter which way it’s viewed, it’s how the film has been interacted with since release that suggests the sequel’s change of format may not be the best decision.

Moana 2: Release Date, Cast, Story & Everything We Know

After Moana’s smashing success in 2016, Disney has green-lit a long-awaited sequel, and it is being released sooner than many expected.

Disney Is Forgetting The Streaming Factor When It Comes To Moana 2’s Movie Change

Families often stream the same movie many times (Moana included)

Disney CEO Bob Iger has explained the studio’s decision to adjust course and turn the follow-up Moana TV show into a feature-length sequel. Speaking with The Wrap, Iger stated, “We knew it deserved a theatrical release. The original Moana film from 2016 recently crossed 1 billion hours streamed on Disney+.” While Iger’s claims are impressive, it doesn’t take into account a vital consideration. Moana‘s availability on Disney+ to families with young children means the movie can be watched again and again – and it often is.

However, this is very different to getting people to go to the cinema and pay for a ticket. Once a month’s subscription for Disney+ is paid, Moana and all the other content can indeed be watched an unlimited number of times. This format of consumption doesn’t translate to a movie receiving a theatrical release, with many fans only seeing the same film within the cinema itself one or two times. Therefore, the interaction with a cinematic release of Moana 2 is unlikely to match the attention garnered by its predecessor on Disney+.

Moana 2’s Release Strategy Could End Up Hurting The Sequel

Disney’s recent cinematic efforts haven’t done too well

Although 2016’s Moana movie was a financial success, Disney’s animated losing streak with its more recent films means they’ve fallen short at the box office. Even the 2021 phenomenon that was Encanto underperformed during its spell in cinemas, but flourished at a later date once the movie hit Disney+. So, although the first Moana did well, recent trends suggest a cinematic release for the sequel is a risky move.

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Moana 2’s Biggest Challenge Is Replacing One Of The Original Movie’s Key Voices

Moana 2 is on the way, but the sequel will be missing one of the first movie’s biggest contributors who helped the film become so successful.

Business considerations aside, there are also artistic ramifications to consider. Moana 2 was commissioned as a TV show, and Iger’s decision to switch to a feature-length movie only came after he saw the episodes. As such, it would appear the show is complete, or at least very near completion. TV shows and movies are different mediums, and so the format of the story in each can differ. Editing a run of episodes down into a movie could result in pacing issues, as well as the loss of key moments intended to appear in the original version of Moana 2.