(Image: Walt Disney Studios)
Disney had high hopes for its live-action "Moana," but the movie struggled at the summer box office, earning just $320 million worldwide. With a reported production budget of $220 million and nearly $100 million in marketing costs, the big-budget release proved to be a costly misfire.
Two months earlier, Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro said during the company’s earnings call that while "Moana" had underperformed theatrically, it could still generate value across Disney’s other businesses. “The live-action ‘Moana’ could go on to perform very well on Disney+, building on the success of the original animated film, which is one of the most-streamed movies of all time.” Disney President Dana Walden, however, was more candid about what went wrong.
(Image: Bloomberg)
Speaking at the Bloomberg Screentime conference, Walden said, “It’s a very competitive marketplace. You have to release the right movie at the right time, and it has to meet a specific demand from audiences. I think our live-action ‘Moana’ is excellent, but I believe it was hurt by arriving so close to ‘Moana 2.’ The animated sequel came together under unusual circumstances—it was originally developed as a series before the plan shifted and it became a movie—but it premiered about 18 months before the live-action film. We may not have allowed enough time for audiences to build anticipation for another movie.”