Dwayne Johnson is spilling some Moana tea. ET’s Nischelle Turner spoke to the actor during the WWE WrestleMania 40 Kickoff event at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Thursday, and he revealed that the team behind the upcoming live-action version of Moana has found its leading lady.
“One of the exciting things about that was actually finding our Moana and how exciting that has been,” he told ET. “The global search to find our Moana — which — between you and I, we found her — not gonna tell you yet. [It’s] very exciting.”
Auli’i Cravalho voiced the character in the 2016 film, but won’t be returning for the live-action version. Others who worked on the project, including Johnson, who voiced Maui, will be involved.
“Lin Manuel Miranda’s coming back. We’re doing the music. Tommy Kail is our director, who directed Hamilton,” he said. “You put everybody together and you want to put the best team together and then you really go for it.”
As for what fans can expect from the film, which Johnson said he’s “excited” to start shooting later this year, the actor teased, “The scale should be beautiful.”
On top of the live-action film, Disney announced earlier this month that an animated sequel to Moana will be released on Nov. 27.
“It’s very exciting. I can’t wait for fans to see the film, the technology, the effects, cutting edge,” Johnson told ET. “We all really went for it. We thought if we’re gonna make a sequel to something so beloved, let’s really go for it.”
“You also have the benefit and the beauty of the ocean. In Moana… the ocean is alive, so when the ocean has a heartbeat and a pulse, that’s just a whole different thing,” he added. “I can’t wait. All new music, which we’re excited.”
Cravalho has yet to reveal if she’s part of the animated sequel.
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