Auli’i Cravalho on Her “Polynesian Pride” at ‘Moana 2’ U.K. Premiere: “My Inner Theater Kid Is Happy”

Auli’i Cravalho is full of “Polynesian pride” at the U.K. premiere for the long-awaited sequel of Disney‘s Moana.

She and Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson, returning in Moana 2 to reprise their roles as the titular princess and as demigod Maui, braved a stormy London blue carpet on Sunday at Cineworld cinema in Leicester Square. Only moments before their arrival, a group of dancers performed a Polynesian dance for the fan-flanked event, head-to-toe in traditional garb. Johnson did minimal press before moving on to take photographs with fans.

Cravalho, who was just 14 when she was first cast as the Wayfinder heroine, spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about leveling up from the original movie and spotlighting “the myths and mythology that I grew up with.”

“If our last film was about connecting with the past, this film is about connecting with the future,” the native Hawaiian said. “And we have a few characters in a few situations that further that. We have Simea, Moana’s younger sister, who is so effective at ripping our hearts into wanting one. To stay home with her or to answer that call from the ancestors?”

She continued, discussing what she loved about filming Moana 2: “Where do I begin? I love that Moana has such an impact, not only for my community of Pacific Islanders, but even beyond. To see a young Wayfinder on screen using traditional techniques, that’s a source of Polynesian pride, that’s a piece of indigenous knowledge that comes straight from us… To see even folklore and myths of how Maui pulled islands out of the sea — that’s myths and mythology that I grew up with.”

“And the fact that Disney has put this into a musical, which means that we break out into spontaneous song, makes my inner theater kid very happy.”

Directed by David Derrick Jr., Jason Hand and Dana Ledoux Miller, the sequel embarks on an adventure to reunite the people of the ocean after receiving a call from Moana’s ancestors. Along with her new crew, voiced by Rose Matafeo, Hualalai Chung and David Fane, the princess soon realizes the task might require sacrifices in the name of the future of her community.

“We did not want to repeat the first film,” Hands told THR. “We wanted to follow Moana from that point forward, and so we wouldn’t have told the story if we didn’t think it was worthy.”

Sailing toward a record-shattering $125 million-$135 million opening over the five-day Thanksgiving holiday corridor, according to tracking data shared with THR, Derrick Jr. spoke about what brings audiences back to the oceanic adventure: “Moana is the best of us. She never gives up. She does everything for her community. She’s not afraid to go toe-to-toe with the demigod or God. But then she’s also goofy and silly and very approachable. Much like Auli’i — she really embodies her.”

Probed on the possibility of a Moana 3, the men were coy. “We worked on the first film. We worked on the second film. We’re connected, but who knows?” Derrick Jr. said.

Composers Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear were also in attendance at the event, who discussed what the melody and lyrics for this musical are really about. Bear explained: “This is the first time we’ve seen a [Disney] heroine allowed to age. She’s inspiring and brave and big and all the things that we love, but she has some very deeply human moments in this movie… The kids that are watching these movies grow up and mess up, inevitably, seeing how someone they look up to learn from those moments instead of letting it beat them down, is really [important.]”