Lin-Manuel Miranda’s music was instrumental to the critical acclaim and success of the first Moana back in 2016, so many were shocked he didn’t return to compose the music for Moana 2. What was more shocking was that Miranda was still working with Disney, as he wrote original music for the upcoming Mufasa: The Lion King, the prequel to 2019’s The Lion King, which opens just weeks after Moana 2. Why did Miranada pick Mufasa over Moana 2? Well, it turns out it wasn’t as simple as choosing one over the other.
While speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, Miranda revealed that he was already working on Mufasa: The Lion King when Moana 2 was announced as a feature film. He notes that Moana 2 songwriters Emily Bear and Abigail Barlow, commonly known as Barlow and Bear, were already working on music for the planned Moana television series before upgrading it to the feature film Moana 2. Miranda said:
“It didn’t line up that way actually. I got the script for Mufasa when I had just finished Encanto, and so I started working on that at the top of ’22. So, Moana 2 was already in process as a TV series with Emily [Bear] and Abigail [Barlow]. So then, when that decision got made to turn that into a movie, they were already cooking.”
Miranda’s account creates an interesting timeline for the development of Moana 2 from a Disney+ series to a feature film. The series was announced in December 2020, and Barlow and Bear blew up in popularity following The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical on TikTok in early 2021. This likely put the songwriting duo on Disney’s radar early on. They were seemingly brought on board sometime in 2021, before Encanto came out in November 2021. Barlow and Bear were hired onto the Moana television series before Miranda became busy with Mufasa: The Lion King, so it is curious Disney didn’t approach him right off the bat if they knew it would be a musical.
Lin-Manuel Miranda Has Shaped Disney Music Over the Past Eight Years
Lin-Manuel Miranda has become an instrumental part of the modern era of Disney music and the company’s image. Moana‘s 2016 release date coincided with Hamilton‘s explosion in popularity. A year before Moana hit theaters, he also had a cameo in The Force Awakens, where he was a special-featured composer and wrote the alien lyrics for the music in Maz Kanata’s castle. Disney acquired the broadcast rights to Miranda’s Hamilton Broadway recording, which they aired on Disney+ in 2020 over the Fourth of July weekend to record-breaking numbers. Miranda followed that up with Encanto, whose breakout song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” became the first Disney song to rank #1 on the Billboard Top 100 since “A Whole New World” from Aladdin. Miranda then wrote original music for 2023’s Little Mermaid and is now following it up with Mufasa: The Lion King.
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Miranda’s absence from Moana 2 can certainly be felt in the audience and critical reaction to the songs for the Disney sequel. Moana 2 reviews have largely been mixed on the original songs, with many noting how it doesn’t quite live up to the high bar set forth by the first film. Barlow and Bear have stood by the soundtrack, claiming that within a month, the kids who saw Moana 2 over Thanksgiving break will be singing the songs when they return to school. “Beyond” and “Can I Get a Chee Hoo?” are seemingly the two songs the studio is putting forth for consideration for the Academy Award for Best Original Song. However, depending on how well the music for Mufasa: The Lion King is received, it could come in and take Moana 2‘s place in the category.
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Moana 2
Moana 2 is the sequel to the 2016 animated film Moana. Directed by David G. Derrick Jr., Jason Hand, and Dana Ledoux Miller, the film continues the journey of Moana as she embarks on new adventures, exploring the vast Pacific Ocean while encountering new characters and challenges along the way.
- Release Date
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November 27, 2024
- Cast
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Auli’i Cravalho
, Dwayne Johnson
, Alan Tudyk
, Rachel House
, Temuera Morrison
, Nicole Scherzinger
, Hualālai Chung
, David Fane
, Rose Matafeo
, Awhimai Fraser
, Gerald Ramsey
, Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda