Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has addressed the mixed reaction to Disney’s live-action Moana, saying he remains proud of the film and believes its cultural impact matters more than divided reviews.
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Although critics praised the film, it was betrayed by the box office.
The live-action Moana remake was a project most moviegoers believed to be pointless. The common consensus was that Disney was attempting nostalgic cash-grab for a film that was released only 10 years ago.
Speaking to PEOPLE, Dwayne Johnson, 54, who plays Maoi in both films, praised the cultural importance of the film while acknowledging the less-than-stellar public opinion.
Dwayne Johnson Believes Live-Action ‘Moana’ To Be An Important Film
“Our first two reviews came out,” the movie star shared, “I’ll never forget it… They were amazing. I was like, wow.”
But it quickly “went another way,” he added with a laugh. “As sometimes happens.”
“That’s just the way it goes because we’re in this business.”
To Johnson, however, with Moana, whether people liked the film or not, he was proud to see Polynesian culture in full display on the big screen. “If you love it, great. If you don’t, no problem,” he said. What “really mattered” was that “the culture really stood up.”
“The movie was made” to celebrate Polynesian culture, he said. “Because of me and our kids who can now look at the big screen and go, ‘That’s us for the first time on a big screen. That’s us up there. How cool is that?’”
The whole community, the whole culture really showed up and they understood,” he continued. “Even if you’re not Polynesian, I think we can understand family and love and loss and perseverance — especially as a mom. Having kids and watching it through their eyes, for me, it’s very magical.”
So magical that it’s enough to make a grown man cry. “I cry through this movie a lot.” By the way, that’s a Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs reference. Not a bigoted one.