Who directed Disney's 2026 live-action film Moana?

Thomas Kail directed Disney’s 2026 live-action film Moana.

Kail was announced as the project’s director in May 2023. Before moving into feature filmmaking, he was best known for directing the stage productions of Hamilton and In the Heights, as well as the filmed version of Hamilton released in 2020. Moana marked his narrative feature directorial debut.

The film retells the story of the 2016 animated adventure, following Moana as she sails beyond the reef of Motunui with the demigod Maui. Jared Bush and Dana Ledoux Miller wrote the screenplay, while Dwayne Johnson, Lin-Manuel Miranda and others served as producers. A common mix-up is confusing Kail with the directors of the animated original, Ron Clements and John Musker, or with the directors of Moana 2, David Derrick Jr., Jason Hand and Dana Ledoux Miller.