Moana has already been the protagonist of two films, and throughout bothMoanamovies, she has managed to avoid a signature aspect of classic Disney princesses. The Disney Princess line is almost as iconic for Disney as Mickey Mouse himself, with the collection of princess characters dating back as far as the company’s first feature-length animated film,Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Moana is one of the latest new additions to the Disney Princess line, and while she has had two movies to be developed,MoanaandMoana 2haven’t given her this one Disney Princess staple.
2016’sMoanakicked off an all-new franchise for Disney, with it being ripe for expansion when Walt Disney Animation Studios decided to start giving a greater focus to sequels. 2024’sMoana 2proved that this was a good idea, and while the film wasn’t as critically well-received as its predecessor,Moana 2was a massive box office hit. Now, alive-actionMoanaremakeis in the works, and moreMoanafilm’s will undoubtedly come based on the sequel’s post-credits scene.Moana 2has already offered some major developments for the character, but it has avoided this obvious one.
Moana 2 Avoided Giving Moana A Love Interest
Despite Adding Even More Characters
Throughout theMoanafranchise, the titular protagonist has never had a love interest, something that is quite surprising after two films. It made sense for Moana not to have a love interest in the first film.The story ofMoanamostly focuses on Moana on the sea with nobody else except Maui and Hei-Hei, meaning that there aren’t a lot of options. In 2016, it was refreshing for a Disney Princess to not have a love interest, as even more recent films likeTangledandFrozenwere centered on romance stories. So, whileMoanadidn’t have a love interest, it seemed obvious thatMoana 2would.
The One Big Reason Moana 2’s Songs Aren’t As Memorable As The First Movie’s
The songs in Moana 2 aren’t bad, but they pale in comparison to the original movie’s iconic soundtrack — and there’s a very simple reason for that.
In the marketing forMoana 2, it was made clear that Moana would be creating a wayfinding team, with it being speculated that one of these members could be her love interest. However, whenMoana 2was finally released, it was again revealed that Moana did not have a love interest. Moana’s changing position in society and theexpanded cast ofMoana 2means that it would have made a little more sense to introduce this type of character. However, it still has not happened, with the next opportunity to give Moana a love interest not coming untilMoana 3.
Disney Princesses Almost Always Have A Love Interest
Ever Since Snow White
TheDisney Princess line has 13 official members, and one common theme throughout them all is that they almost always have a love interest. Snow White falls in love with a prince inSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs, but this romance isn’t as central to the film’s conflict of the Evil Queen going after Snow White. The same can be said forSleeping Beauty, in which the romance is more of a B-story. However, Disney Princess movies likeCinderella,The Little Mermaid,Beauty and the Beast, andAladdinare all entirely hinged on their romance stories.
During the Disney Renaissance, Disney began making more complex female characters. However, many of these still came with love interests, although they tended to be relationships that were developed throughout the film rather than love at first sight situations.PocahontasandMulanhave their protagonists facing much grander strugglesand just happening to find love along the way. Tiana almost resents Prince Naveen inThe Princess and the Frog, with it taking a while for them to fall in love, while Rapunzel doesn’t think much of Flynn Rider at all inTangled.
Every single Disney Princess had a love interest fromSnow White and the Seven Dwarfsin 1937 toTangledin 2010, showing how linked the princesses were to their love interests. There has been a lot of commentary on this trend, as it can definitely be argued that some of the earlier Disney movies define their female protagonists by their relationship to a man. Thus, Disney attempted to make these relationships more complex in their later outings, before stopping entirely withBrave.
Moana Not Having A Love Interest Continues A Modern Disney Princess Trend
After Brave & Raya And The Last Dragon
Moana not having a love interest isn’t new for Disney, as it actually continues a modern Disney Princess trend. After Rapunzel, the next official member of the Disney Princess line is Merida.Bravedoesn’t give her a love interest, and Raya doesn’t have one either inRaya and the Last Dragon. Anna and Elsa fromFrozenaren’t official Disney Princesses, but this trend can be seen in them too. Elsa doesn’t have a love interest, and Anna’s first love interest turns out to be a villain, with her ending up with Kristoff.
Some modernDisney movies with female protagoniststhat aren’t Disney Princess movies have also neglected adding love interests.EncantoandWishare the main two, with neither of these films giving their protagonists romantic subplots. While love interests are often given to the side characters in these movies, they very rarely play a part in the main story anymore. Thus,MoanaandMoana 2is only continuing this trend, with theMoanafranchise not standing out among its contemporaries.
Love Is A Key Part Of The Moana Movies, Just Not Romantically
She Loves Her Family & Culture
Although Moana doesn’t have a love interest in theMoanamovies, love is still a key part of the franchise.Moanais all about Moana’s love for her family, with her being motivated by her family’s survival in the second film. Moana’s relationship with her grandmother is also a major aspect of bothMoanafilms.Moana’s love for her culture is also another type of love that is seen in the movies, with this especially being seen inMoana 2.
Moana Is Now A Demigod & It Has 5 Big Implications For Moana 3 & The Future Of Disney’s Franchise
Moana 2 makes a big change to Moana, and her new demigod powers will change how the Moana franchise works forever, in animation and live-action.
Thus, theMoanamovies are just highlighting another type of love. Romantic love has been examined in all kinds of Disney Princess movies, so it is refreshing to seeMoanalook at a different side of it. It is possible thatMoana 3or another futureMoanaproject could change things by giving her a love interest, but in the first two movies, it isn’t missed.
