According to Inside the Magic, Disney's live-action remake of Moana has wrapped production and the studio will soon be bidding farewell to the original animated film's era as the new version prepares to take center stage. The project is done — which means the casting decisions are locked in, for better or worse.
Why This Moment Matters for Fancasting
There's something uniquely bittersweet about a live-action Disney remake crossing the finish line. Once production closes, the dream casting conversation shifts from "who should play this role" to "who did they pick — and did they get it right?" For Moana specifically, the stakes feel especially high. The film's characters are so beloved, and the cultural representation so meaningful to Pacific Islander communities, that every casting choice carries real weight.
The roles at the heart of any Moana fan cast are obvious: the fearless, ocean-chosen Moana herself, the demigod Maui, the warm and wise Gramma Tala, and the steadfast Chief Tui. These aren't just supporting players — they're the emotional pillars of the story. So who were fans dreaming about before the cameras rolled?
What myCast Fans Wanted
This is where it gets genuinely interesting. Across two active fan-cast stories on myCast, a clear consensus emerged on at least one role — and it might surprise exactly no one.
In the Moana story with 15 total votes across 8 roles, Dwayne Johnson earned 3 votes for Maui — the single highest vote total for any adult role in that story. The same pattern holds in the second Moana story, where Johnson again tops the Maui category with 3 votes out of just 5 cast overall. The Rock is, apparently, the people's demigod. Given that Johnson voiced Maui in the original animated film, this tracks — fans clearly wanted continuity, and that instinct makes a lot of sense creatively.
Beyond Maui, the fan picks get more eclectic and genuinely fascinating. In the Moana story, Maia Kealoha pulled in 4 votes for Toddler Moana — the highest vote count of any single pick across both stories. Kealoha, who is Native Hawaiian and starred in The Fabelmans, is exactly the kind of culturally grounded choice that feels right for this franchise. For Chief Tui, fans backed with 2 votes — a New Zealand Maori actor whose physicality and presence would bring real authenticity to the role. picked up a vote for Sina in both stories, earned 2 votes to voice the beloved (and chaotic) Hei Hei the Rooster, and — who voiced Tamatoa in the original — got a nod to reprise that gloriously unhinged crab. For Gramma Tala, fans were split between and , two very different but equally compelling visions for the role.