Beyond ‘Moana’: Auliʻi Cravalho Reflects on Finding Her Way After Disney Princess Stardom
10 years ago, Auliʻi Cravalho was cast in her first professional acting role as a Disney princess. She would also be the studio’s first Polynesian princess (though the character herself insists she’s not technically a princess), marking a huge moment for AAPI representation.
Two years later, “Moana” officially hit theaters and has proven to have some strong sea legs, becoming the most streamed movie on Disney+ last year. It shot Cravalho to fame, but it also provided her with something that most actresses don’t get right away — or, in some cases, ever.
“Starting with an incredible film like ‘Moana’ meant that I could be choosy [about future roles], that I’m afforded the beauty of being picky,” Cravalho revealed to TheWrap.
The actress took full advantage of that opportunity immediately. Between starring in “Moana” and “Moana 2,” now in theaters everywhere, she’s played a teen facing homelessness in “All Together Now,” a mean girl who only realizes in death how terrible she was in “Darby and the Dead” and starred in the actual “Mean Girls” movie musical where she played Janis, one of the most biting characters in the entire story.
Naturally, a few of those involved singing, given her pipes revealed in “Moana.” But really, Cravalho chose all of them in an effort to immediately start expanding her range and figuring out who she is as a person.
“I want to be challenged continually, and I think enough people know that I can sing,” she said. “So another reason I’ve been so selective is that there is a tendency, I find, to put people who can sing only in singing roles, and I wanted to do other things. It’s part of the reason I also wanted to just lean into the things that I am not the best at.”
Cravalho noted that, especially being so young when “Moana” came around, there was “very little to no degree of separation” between her real self and the character. But that wasn’t a bad thing; in fact, she loved it.
Having grown up in Hawaii and attended an all-Hawaiian school, she became Moana with pride because it was an opportunity to show off her true identity, which has always been rooted in her culture and community.
“But as I’ve grown up and I’ve played different characters, including Janis, and including AJ Campos [in “Crush”], including just all these incredible leading ladies who are able to not get stuck in a mold, which I really love,” she said. “All of these women are pushing the boundaries of their families, or for themselves, or for their school, or for their friendships, and I hope to continue down that path. I hope to continue playing strong leading ladies.”
Indeed, she’s doing just that. Cravalho is currently in the middle of her Broadway debut, starring as bohemian icon Sally Bowles in “Cabaret.” Obviously, the show is pretty different from “Moana,” and most of what she’s done previously as the 1920s-set story touches on fascism, totalitarianism, misogyny, and conversations about abortion care.
It’s arguably Cravalho’s most adult role yet, and the type of character she has really looked forward to taking on — even if her “Moana” fans are occasionally taken aback at the adult nature of the show.
“The stage door is a perfect place for the mind meld of people who have grown up with me in ‘Moana’ and then come to see ‘Cabaret,’ not really knowing what the show is about. And when I see them at the end of the show, they go, ‘(gasp) Nazis?!’ And I remind them, ‘Yes darling, 1920s Berlin!'” she said, putting on her Bowles accent.
Cravalho also physically stepped outside her comfort zone at the start of 2024 by shaving her head, a move that ended up being a bit poorly timed, as she did it after wrapping on “Mean Girls,” but then had to do reshoots. Oops.
“I was also really hoping to get out of the high school category, and I was willing to do anything,” she said. “I recognize that I’m 24 and I will be playing high schoolers until my mid-30s. But I do think that even just taking that leap of exposure, and I don’t mean exposure — no one really cared that I did that, not exposure in like a PR way — but myself feeling exposed, it helps me to play characters who are different from myself.”
But Moana is still very much part of Auliʻi Cravalho, and seeing the impact it’s had only makes her proud. She recalls one “Cabaret” stage door interaction with a pair of fans recently where they both told her that they performed “How Far I’ll Go,” her showstopping song from the first film, for their middle school talent show and senior showcase, respectively.
“And I went, ‘How old am I? What? What do you mean?!'” she remembered with a laugh. “And it’s true that a whole eight years has passed, which means a whole generation has grown up with Moana and the characters that I’ve played, and I still find it incredible that I have made an impact by simply existing.”
She continued: “Being a young woman of color, being a young woman of mixed descent, being Polynesian, being queer, like, all my me being me allows others to see themselves where they might have not thought it was possible, on screen or on stage.”
Returning for for “Moana 2” felt like “coming home” for the actress. Even with the potential added pressure of the first film having done so well, Cravalho said that there was no hesitation in choosing to come back to voice the character.
“I think there is always a real struggle not to compare one film to another, especially sequels. But the thing is, if I said no, they would have found someone who sounded similar to me, and I’ll be damned!” she said with a laugh, putting on a gruff, overprotective voice. “I’ll be damned if anyone touches this animated character, you understand me?”
For Cravalho, it’s nearly a decade later, but only three years have passed for Moana in the movie. Still, the wayfinder gets an updated look in “Moana 2,” visibly older and wearing a new costume. Given the development of Cravalho’s own singing voice, the character also sounds more mature, belting more in the songs written by Barlow & Bear for the sequel.
“I listened back to the first film, and I realized, my God, the youth in my voice is something that is — you can’t replicate that,” she said. “So it’s really nice that I’ve grown up and then Moana also has grown up as well.”
It wasn’t always a given that Moana would age. According to the actress, when she first signed onto the project — which was originally going to be a TV series — it hadn’t been decided if Moana would be any older. It was the addition of Moana’s little sister Simea (voiced adorably by Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda) that decided time needed to have passed. And that was something Cravalho welcomed.
“I remember really hoping that we would see [Moana’s] growth, not just through story, but then also through my voice and through animation,” she recalled. “Seeing women age on screen is such a beautiful thing. And yes, it is in the details, but I think it makes that story all the more effective.”
Despite the time that’s passed in real life, Cravalho said she and Moana are “still pretty much the same person,” but also recognizes that neither woman is the same person they were when the first film was made. Now, with more life and more jobs under her belt, Cravalho is able to fully take it all in and properly experience it.
Because, in reality, the actress doesn’t actually remember much about the whirlwind that was the first film, in part because she was just eager to please.
“I was so young. I wish I journaled more. I wish that I spent time out of the hotel rooms where all of those press junkets took place,” she said. “I was also still working to graduate school, so I was in tutoring lessons, and just the fullness of that time, unfortunately, I don’t remember. So now I am a lot more mindful at being present.”
The growing continues in tangible ways too. Cravalho is taking dance lessons to help with the choreography required by Broadway and has started taking stunt lessons as well, in the hopes of taking on more action roles in the future. She’d love to be a villain.
“I admit that being a Disney princess comes easily,” she said with a smile. “So instead, I have to challenge myself to do other things.”
Of course, the mid-credits scene of “Moana 2” sure does set up possibilities for more in the universe. So, could we see more of her Moana going forward?
As Cravalho pointed out, the core of the “Moana” movies is found in Polynesian culture, and real stories she heard while growing up.
“I can see a million different directions that her story could go in next,” she said. “And I am biased, but I really hope that I don’t have to say goodbye to her anytime soon.”
“Moana 2” is now in theaters everywhere.
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