Moana 2 is the next of upcoming Disney movies from the studio’s animation house, and fall is approaching fast! Finally we have a complete two-minute trailer (which you can watch above) packed with set up for Moana and Maui’s next adventure and a look at the troubling waters they will soon face.
During Friday night’s Disney Entertainment Showcase panel at the D23 Expo in Anaheim, California, Auli’i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson took to the stage to present the latest trailer for the animated Moana sequel. It gave me a much better idea of where the movie is going story-wise, but what I really want to talk about is the brief first look at the movie’s villain!
Cravalho spoke about it during D23 as well. She teased: “wait ’til you see the villain we have in this one. It is the storm of all storms.” If you look closely you can see her in this shot from the trailer at the time stamp of 1:20.
In the trailer, the footage is accompanied by a female voice that says “You will be destroyed, and your Wayfinder too” before Maui goes head to head with fighting it with his giant magical fish hook. The villain seems to be somehow connected to the moon and is seen in a form made up of a ton of birds.
My theory? I think she will have deep ties to Maui and his past. I think it will be the Polynesian deity Hina of New Zealand, who is considered to be either the elder sister or wife of Maui. Yes, the Maui the Disney movie is based on. Cool, right? I thought I sensed a Kiwi accent from the villain, too, so I feel like it checks out.
I’d also think the sequel to Moana will want to dive into Maui’s backstory further. After the first movie did an incredible job of setting the stage of our main hero, I think it would be interesting if she was challenged by her own hero if something shady about Maui came out through this villain. It would make sense to add some personal stakes to the sequel, and hey, the demigod must have a storied past to delve into.
Oh, and I think Maui will have to fight her alone after Moana gets sucked into some kind of deep dark ancestral wormhole that threatens her life, and maybe briefly reunites her with her grandma. Why? Well, the trailer seems to also have Moana wrestling with mortality, as her little sister (who is super cute and also debuts in this trailer) shares worry she will not return. I didn’t even notice this shot until my third trailer watch, but the reunion is definitely happening…
I’ll admit, I’ve been stressed about the Moana 2 sequel, especially since it was originally supposed to be a Disney+ series, but I definitely am digging the latest trailer. You can look forward to Moana 2 this November 27, and an upcoming live-action Moana movie in 2026!