Catherine Laga'aia beats 32,000 candidates to play Moana in Disney's live-action remake, opening July 8

Disney's live-action Moana opens in South Korea on July 8. At its center is Catherine Laga'aia, a newcomer who outlasted roughly 32,000 other candidates to claim the title role.

Director Thomas Kail, the Broadway figure behind Hamilton and In the Heights, said the decision came fast. "When I saw Catherine's first audition video singing 'How Far I'll Go,' I felt that 'this actress understands Moana's longing,'" he said. He stood up from his chair and shouted "Maybe I found it!" the moment the clip ended.

The casting carries personal weight for Laga'aia. Her grandfather and grandmother are from Savai'i in the South Pacific and the Samoan islands — the same settings the film draws from. "I grew up watching the character Moana," she said, "so I became someone who could share her boldness, courage, and curiosity." She wanted the film to serve as a tribute to the 2016 animated original.

Leaving home to shoot the film mirrored the story she was telling. "I empathized with Moana's trembling as she leaves a familiar place to take on a new challenge," Laga'aia said. Her mother steadied her with a single line: "You clearly know what you need to do."

Dwayne Johnson, who voiced Maui in the 2016 animation, returns in the same role on screen this time. He called the project a tribute to his maternal grandfather, who is also of Samoan descent. He wanted to bring something the animated version couldn't: "the authenticity that humans have, and the weakness that humans have because they are human."

The original Moana earned $640 million worldwide when it opened in 2016. The live-action adaptation follows its story closely. A girl chosen by the ocean teams up with the legendary hero Maui to save a cursed island. (Kail keeping the plot intact while swapping animation for flesh-and-blood performers is either the safest call or the boldest one, depending on who you ask.)