Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Moana 2.Disney’s latest hit sequel,Moana 2, has finally been released digitally, available for purchase on a number of platforms. The film continues where the previous movie left off, telling the story of Moana (Auli’i Cravalho) as she travels around the ocean, trying to reunite the disparate islands of her people.Moana 2received mixed reviews, with a lot of the negativity pointed at the uneven pacing and underwritten plot, but one of the things the movie did quite well was its introduction of new characters.
WithMoana 3all but confirmed at this point,the biggest question surrounding the future of theMoanafranchise is what ramifications the most recent film will haveon the wider universe.Moana 2’s post-credits scenehints at what is coming next, with a new major antagonist having been set up throughout the course of the film. However, there is one aspect of the series as of now that deserves further exploration, that being the team-ups between the newdemigods of theMoanauniverse.
Moana 3 Is Sure To Have A Demigod Team-Up Story
Demigod Team-Ups Are A Staple Of The Moana Series Now
WhenMoana 3eventually releases, one aspect that is essentially guaranteed to happen is a team-up between the demigod characters that we have been introduced to so far, especially considering that Moana herself becomes a demigod inMoana 2’s ending. The first two films have done well with this kind of story, the second one arguably even better than its predecessor, so it absolutely stands to reason thatwhenMoana 3is storyboarded, it will maintain this trope of the series.
Moana 2’s Original Plan Would’ve Meant Disney Missed Out On A $1 Billion Hit
Moana 2 only eventually evolved into a box-office smash, which highlights an important lesson Disney Studios has to remember going forward.
In the original movie from 2016, though Moana isn’t a demigod herself, Maui (Dwayne Johnson) obviously is. The two of them act as the central duo throughout the story, with The Ocean serving as a similar allied force. The second film has a much more explicit version of this narrative, as Moana becomes a demigod and teams up with Maui to push back Nalo (Tofiga Fepulea’i) andraise the island Motufetu, on top of becoming temporary allies with another demigod, Matangi (Awhimai Fraser), when she rescues Moana from Nalo’s prison.
Matangi Is The Obvious Choice For this Role
Actress Awhimai Fraser as Matangi in Moana 2.
Matangi is introduced inMoana 2as another demigod, themed around bats, with some vague, vampire-like abilities; she doesn’t have any official domain, at least none that are mentioned in the movie. She starts as a villain, working for the film’s main antagonist Nalo, essentially being a bodyguard and enforcer and serving him completely. However, over the course of the film, it is revealed that Matangi doesn’t like working under Nalo, and has been acting at his behest against her will.
Matangi’s name is likely derived from the word “Matagi”, which means “wind” in multiple Polynesian languages.
While Matangi still works forNalo at the end ofMoana 2, she did what she could to help the protagonist escape and reunite with Maui and her friends, which ultimately led to their victory. Moana and Matangi develop a quick rapport during their initial meeting, and that relationship could easily be expanded upon with future installments in the series.Moana and Matangi becoming actual allies would be a great direction for the series to go,building upon the short interactions that they had inMoana 2.
Moana 2 Already Set Up How Matangi & Moana Can Work Together
Moana & Matangi Share A Common Goal
Moana 2ends with an interesting setup forMoana 3, finally showing Nalo’s true form, having him berate Matangi for her failure to stop Moana and Maui, and depicting him gaining more villainous allies, specifically Tamatoa (Jemaine Clement) from the first movie. With Matangi’s dissatisfaction with working under Nalo, and the fact that he seems to know that she betrayed him once already,her eventual reunion with Moana seems inevitable,with the two of them teaming up to finally take down Nalo for good.
A part of the plot ofMoana 3will probably involve breaking whatever binds Matangi to Nalo.
How this alliance will eventually come to be is another matter entirely, as there are many different ways that these character’s paths could cross again as the story continues. The easiest answer would be that Matangi simply defects and joins thenew demigod Moanaand her allies, butthe movie implies that there is a supernatural force keeping her bound in servitude to Nalo, even if she is able to act against his will, as she proves by saving Moana and Maui.
Moana 3 Can Make A Maui Decision Moana 2 Was Too Scared To Now
Maui didn’t change much throughout his story in Moana 2, but this almost wasn’t the case, with the ending setting up a choice that the film avoided.
Matangi says that she has been in Nalo’s service for 1000 years, so she likely won’t be able to just leave because she wants to, and a part of the plot ofMoana 3will probably involve breaking whatever binds Matangi to Nalo. However, the next movie in the series will have a lot of ground to cover, so it likely won’t be the central driving force behind the narrative, as the threat of Nalo should be focused on as the primary story being told.
Moana & Matangi Teaming Up In Moana 3 Would Be Better Than Another Maui Team-Up
The Moana Series Needs To Stay Fresh & Evolve
In afranchise likeMoana, which, based on the success of the second movie, is going to continue for quite some time, the most important element in retaining people’s interest is to ensure that subsequent releases don’t feel too repetitive, keeping things feeling fresh with each new project. WhileMoana and Maui have a great relationship throughout the movies, it has been explored very thoroughly, and while there is certainly more material to mine from that pairing, changing up the central team is vital to keeping the series from feeling stale.
That isn’t to say that Maui shouldn’t be present in the franchise going forward, but his presence may be best suited to being more of a side character, as opposed to one of the main team.
As Matangi has already been introduced, and her goals seem to align very closely with Moana’s, their pairing simply makes sense andwould be a great way of mixing things up.Moana’s human friends are a significant change inMoana 2, so the series is clearly open to adjusting who the central characters are, and Matangi seems like the obvious next step. Whether she fully joins the team right at the start of whatever’s next for the franchise, or whether their alliance is more of a slow burn throughout the sequel, this team-up would be a natural evolution.
However, that isn’t to say that Maui shouldn’t be present in the franchise going forward, but his presence may be best suited to being more of a side character, as opposed to one of the main team.Dwayne Johnson, Maui’s voice actor, is a huge star, and it would be foolish to diminish his role too much, as he is one of the most iconic characters in the series.Moana 2shows that he still has a lot to offer, but repeating the same thing for the sequel might come off as lazy and uninspired.
