‘Moana 2’ Copyright Lawsuit: Why Disney Is Being Sued

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Moana 2, the already beloved sequel to the original starring Auli’i Carvalho and Dwayne Johnson, is facing a legal battle. According to The Hollywood Reporter, a new copyright lawsuit was filed in California federal court over the weekend, alleging certain aspects of the film were simply taken from a similar story.

Here’s everything you need to know about the allegations and the lawsuit.

When Was the ‘Moana 2’ Copyright Lawsuit Filed?

According to THR, the action was filed Friday, January 10, 2025 in California federal court. The highly anticipated animated film debuted to massive popularity on November 27, 2024.

Who Filed the ‘Moana 2’ Copyright Lawsuit?

Per THR, Buck Woodall, an animation screenwriter, claims he wrote an animated film of his own entitled “Bucky,” written back in 2003. According to the lawsuit, “Moana and her crew are sucked into a perilous whirlpool-like oceanic portal, another dramatic and unique device-imagery found in Plaintiffs materials that could not possibly have been developed by chance or without malicious intentions.” Among other alleged similarities are a hero seeking to break a curse and a perilous journey to locate and save an ancient island.

Additionally, the complaint levels claims that the defendants had received story elements for the original Moana from Woodall himself. “Disney’s Moana was produced in the wake of Woodall’s delivery to the Defendants of virtually all constituent parts necessary for its development and production after more than 17 years of inspiration and work on his animated film project,” states the complaint.

Defendants include Dreamworks Animation’s head of development Jenny Marchick, who at the time was a director of development for Mandeville Films, who had a “first look” deal with the animation giant.

Disney denies the allegations, stating that nobody on the Disney projects had seen Woodall’s creative work. “Moana was not inspired by or based in any way on [Woodall] or his ‘Bucky’ project, which I learned of for the first time after this lawsuit was filed,” director Ron Clements, one of the directors of the first Moana, wrote in his court declaration, per the outlet. Disney also reportedly included supporting documents showing the research, development, story ideas, and even travel journals for Moana, to the court.

According to THR, a judge ruled in November 2024 that the first lawsuit for Moana would not go forward because Woodall brought the action “too late.” With the release of the sequel came an opportunity to bring the suit again.

How Much Has ‘Moana 2’ Earned at the Box Office So Far?

Deadline reported on December 24, 2024, that Moana 2 had raked in a gigantic sum in excess of $800 million. By January 5, per Variety, the film was well on its way to a billion in revenue, surpassing $950 million. It debuted at over $220 million in November. Woodall is seeking $10 billion in damages, or 2.5 percent of gross revenue. According to THR, he’s also requesting a court order that would restrict any further alleged infringement of his copyrights.