Catherine Laga'aia: "Grew up watching the 'Moana' animation... became the real Moana"

*This content was translated by AI.

Catherine Laga'aia, who overcame a 32,000-to-1 competition ratio to be cast in the film 'Moana', shared her thoughts.

On the morning of the 29th, a video press conference for the Disney film 'Moana' was held. Dwayne Johnson, Catherine Laga'aia, and director Thomas Kail attended the conference that day.

The film 'Moana' is an ocean adventure where Moana, a girl chosen by the sea, sets sail for the unknown ocean to save a cursed island alongside the legendary hero Maui. It is a live-action adaptation of the 2016 animated film 'Moana'.

Catherine Laga'aia, a new actress of Samoan descent, was cast as Moana, who embarks on a journey to find her destiny. Dwayne Johnson, who voiced Maui in the animated films 'Moana' and 'Moana 2', took on the role of the legendary hero Maui in person this time.

Catherine Laga'aia was cast as the protagonist of the live-action film 'Moana' after overcoming a 32,000-to-1 competition ratio. As an actress actually from Polynesia (a collective term for more than 1,000 islands within the so-called 'Polynesian Triangle' connecting Aotearoa, Rafah Nui, and Hawaii, which is a sub-region of Oceania), Catherine Laga'aia said, "Through this work, I wanted to pay tribute to the 2016 animated film 'Moana'. Back then, an excellent female character named Yeo Seong-eul (CEO) from the Taeyang Island was well created, so I grew up watching such characters since I was young." She added, "Growing up watching such a representative character made me grow into someone with a similar disposition to Moana. I admired Moana's boldness and curiosity, so I ended up having those traits myself. While acting, I wanted to emphasize those parts."

Meanwhile, 'Moana' is scheduled to be released on July 8.

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*This content was translated by AI.