Original voice actress Auli’i Cravalho returns to Disney for “Moana 2”

It’s time to once again consider the coconut.

The line where the sky meets the sea is calling… again.

Auli’i Cravalho, the actress who lent her voice to the titular Polynesian princess in 2016’s Moana, confirmed that she’ll return for the forthcoming animated sequel in an Instagram post. A rep for Disney also confirmed the news to EW.

In the video, set to Beyoncé's "Texas Hold 'Em", Cravalho excitedly jumps in front of the iconic sorcerer hat from Fantasia that adorns Disney’s animation studios in Burbank, Calif., placing a tropical flower behind her ear. “That feeling when you’re officially returning to Motonui,” the actress wrote in the text of the video. “We’re sailing WAY beyond the reef this November…” she wrote in the caption.

The animated sequel was announced as a surprise last month without a cast attached. Cravalho won’t be singing any new tunes from original composer Lin-Manuel Miranda, as the film’s new soundtrack will be composed by Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear, who won a Grammy for their Unofficial Bridgerton Musical, alongside original composers with Mark Mancina and Opetaia Foa’.

The official logline for the film says, “Walt Disney Animation Studios’ epic animated musical Moana 2 takes audiences on an expansive new voyage with Moana, Maui and a brand-new crew of unlikely seafarers. After receiving an unexpected call from her wayfinding ancestors, Moana must journey to the far seas of Oceania and into dangerous, long-lost waters for an adventure unlike anything she’s ever faced.”

Disney CEO Bob Iger explained that the film “was originally developed as a series” for Disney+, "but we were impressed with what we saw and felt it deserved a theatrical release." Iger also reiterated that the live-action adaptation of Moana starring original voice actor Dwayne Johnson  is still being developed.

Moana 2 sails into theaters Nov. 27, 2024.

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Related content:

• Surprise! Moana 2 is sailing to theaters this November — see the first look

• Dwayne Johnson is developing a live-action reimagining of Moana for Disney

• Moana directors Ron Clements, John Musker talk four decades of Disney movies

Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.