Live-Action Moana Posts $95M Opening, Just Nipping Snow White at BO

Disney’s live-action Moana remake has made a rough first splash at the box office, landing an estimated $95 million worldwide across its opening weekend.

Key takeaways

• Moana is projected to debut with $95 million globally during its opening weekend.
• The opening places Moana just ahead of Snow White, which earned $87.3 million in its 2025 debut.
• Estimated totals split Moana’s run at $43 million domestically and $52 million internationally.
• Domestic projections had hoped for $60–$65 million, with international expectations reaching up to $75 million.
• The film’s reported production cost is $250 million, making the softer-than-expected start more concerning.
• Disney’s live-action slate also includes Tangled (expected to arrive in 2028) and other projects such as Bambi, Hercules, Lilo and Stitch 2, and a Gaston-focused movie.

Moana’s opening weekend underperforms

The opening weekend total barely edges out Disney’s Snow White remake, which brought in an estimated $87.3 million during its own notoriously disappointing first weekend back in 2025. In practical terms, the early numbers suggest Moana isn’t trending toward the kind of start Disney likely wanted.

Breaking down the weekend estimates, Moana is currently showing about $43 million from domestic theaters, alongside roughly $52 million from international markets. That still keeps the remake in first place for the mid-July weekend, but the performance still appears shy of the targets Disney was aiming for—especially as the studio continues pushing more live-action reimaginings of well-known animated titles.

The movie stars Catherine Laga’aia as the title character and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as Maui, reprising the role for this live-action version. Before release, higher-end expectations reportedly set a domestic range of $60 million to $65 million, with overseas expectations that could reach $75 million.

Those figures don’t seem to be materializing, and that mismatch sets up a tougher conversation for Disney given a reported budget of $250 million. With the start coming in softer than projected, the studio may be looking at a more challenging path to profitability as the live-action push continues.

Snow White’s impact on Tangled, plus what else is in development

The report also notes that when Snow White failed to land as hoped last year, it supposedly contributed to the indefinite postponement of the live-action Tangled project. While progress later stalled for a period, the project has reportedly picked up momentum again.

That revival includes additional cast additions, reportedly fueled by the success of the live-action Lilo and Stitch movie.

At the moment, there’s no indication Disney plans to reverse course as Moana struggles to make a strong impression. Meanwhile, Tangled is expected to premiere in 2028. Other remakes and related projects in the pipeline include live-action Bambi, Hercules, and Lilo and Stitch 2, along with a separate project drawn from Beauty and the Beast’s villain Gaston.

More box office updates: Michael Jackson biopic, Toy Story 5, and Supergirl

Elsewhere in the box office conversation, Universal Pictures and Lionsgate’s Michael Jackson biopic has crossed the $1 billion mark worldwide. The milestone is being framed as a first-of-its-kind achievement for the genre, with the film noted as the earliest biographical movie in history to reach that level.

Toy Story 5 is also orbiting the same $1 billion threshold, currently sitting at $879 million after its fourth weekend in theaters.

The weekend also included another less-than-encouraging update for Supergirl, which now totals $115.4 million overall. That total remains far from the $200 million ending some people had expected, and the gap suggests meaningful losses for Warner Bros. and the early direction of its DC universe.

Are you excited for more live-action Disney remakes?

As Moana works to find its footing after the underwhelming launch, a review score has been shared alongside the release coverage. The live-action Moana movie received a 6/10 evaluation, and the accompanying commentary states that Dwayne Johnson returns as Maui opposite newcomer Catherine Laga’aia in a frame-by-frame retelling of the Disney animated musical, but the critique argues it doesn’t do enough to justify why it was made.

Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).