Why Didn't Lin-Manuel Miranda Write the Music for "Moana 2"? All About the Songwriter's Absence — and the Two History-Making Composers Who Stepped In

12/09/2024 02:54 PM

Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear called Lin-Manuel Miranda for advice while working on the hit animated Disney sequel

Lin-Manuel Miranda's songs for Moana were so influential that they won him a Grammy award but the songwriter didn't return to make music for the Disney movie's sequel.

Instead, the music for Moana 2 — which hit theatres on Nov. 27 and broke multiple box office records — is the result of two history-making composers, Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear.  

According to an October 2024 interview with Billboard, Walt Disney Music president Tom MacDougall first approached the songwriting duo about a potential project around 2021. Though Barlow said they didn't expect much, that potential project turned out to be a Moana-inspired series for Disney+. They had already started working on songs when Disney CEO Bob Iger announced the pivot from show to big-screen sequel in February 2024.

That switch made Barlow and Bear the youngest and first all-female writing duo to ever score a Disney film — and Barlow acknowledged toEntertainment Weekly that they had big shoes to fill.

"It's a passing of the baton to this younger generation," Auliʻi Cravalho, who voiced Moana in both films, also told EW in September 2024. "For two women to be part of that and trying to get to the heart of the story, which is a young woman finding her way, I couldn't think of a better duo than Barlow and Bear. To use some of Lin's words, they're young, scrappy, and hungry."

Even though Miranda's musical touch isn't felt in Moana 2, he will lead the score for another upcoming Disney movie. The award-winning songwriter created original tracks for Mufasa: The Lion King, an animated prequel to the 2019 adaption of The Lion King that is set to release in theatres on Dec. 20. 

So, why didn't Lin-Manuel Miranda write the music for Moana 2? Here's everything to know about the new composers behind the film's sequel and Miranda's future with the franchise. 

Who wrote the music for Moana? 

Miranda co-wrote the music for the 2016 Moana film alongside Mark Mancina and Opetaia Foa'i. The score was nominated for multiple awards, including an Oscar, and his original track "How Far I'll Go" won a Grammy for best song written for visual media.

Miranda told PEOPLE in 2017 that the day he learned he landed the gig for Moana was also momentous for another reason. 

"I got the job the same day I found out I was going to become a father," Miranda said. "That very much has colored my writing experience. Just thinking of, 'My kid is going to see these. My kid is going to sing these songs.' I think that was always a part of my mind."

Who wrote the music for Moana 2?

Barlow and Bear co-wrote the music for the 2024 sequel Moana 2, along with Mancina and Foa'i. The duo famously collaborated on The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical Album, which went viral and earned them a Grammy award for best musical theater album in 2022.

For their role on Moana 2, Barlow told Variety in December 2024 that Miranda was always just a "Facetime call away."

"He gave me books from musical theater storytelling greats [that were] all about how to craft a lyric and how to tell stories through music in the most succinct and pleasing way," the singer-songwriter said. "He was like, 'Don't be afraid to lean into the things you like to listen to,' and that was really helpful." 

The composers are the youngest and first female duo to create a full soundtrack for a Disney animated film. The Moana 2 album was released in November 2024, and two of the songs, "Beyond" and "Can I Get a Chee Hoo," are being submitted for Academy Award consideration, per The Hollywood Reporter.

Why didn't Lin-Manuel Miranda write the music for Moana 2?

Miranda has not confirmed why he didn't return to write the music for Moana 2 but fans of his musical genius won't have to wait long to hear more of his songs. He wrote the soundtrack for Disney's upcoming animated prequel Mufasa: The Lion King. 

During a December 2024 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Miranda said that he felt pressure to write songs that live up to the original Lion King score, which he described as "all bangers, no skips." He also talked about the differences in writing for this animated film compared to the ones he's done in the past. 

"All of the Disney characters I've written for have been very like empowered heroines who don't need a man, but I got to write like a ballad," Miranda said. "I remember reading online someone saying, 'Lin doesn't write villain songs.' Like Michael Jordan, I took that personally. I wrote a villain song and Mads Mikkelson sings it because he's the big villain in the movie, and he's terrifying."

Mufasa: The Lion King premieres in theatres on Dec. 20, and stars Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Billy Eichner, Beyoncé and her daughter, Blue Ivy Carter. 

Who is in the Moana 2 cast? 

Cravalho and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson reprise their lead roles in Moana 2. Rachel House also returns as the voice of Gramma Tala and Nicole Scherzinger once again plays Moana's mother, Sina. 

Moana 2 also stars some new faces, including Hualālai Chung as tapestry and history expert Moni, Rose Matafeo as ship-building specialist Lato and David Fane as a farmer named Kele.  

What is Moana 2 about? 

Set three years after the original story, Moana 2 follows Moana and Maui, who are reunited once again after she receives an unexpected call from her wayfinding ancestors. Together — along with a crew of unlikely seafarers — they journey across Oceania to find a long-lost island and break a curse. 

Bear told Variety that the song "Beyond" shows how the stakes are much higher for Moana the second time she's called to leave her home. 

"It's breaking her in half to think they have a world worse than ever," she said. "I think we also wanted to highlight the vulnerability because Moana is very strong and brave and powerful, and all the things we know and love her to be, but she's also human."

Is Lin-Manuel Miranda involved in the Moana live-action movie?

In 2023, Johnson announced a live-action adaptation of Moanawas in the works and that he would once again reprise his role as Maui. Newcomer Catherine Laga'aia will star as Moana, while Cravalho is producing the film alongside Miranda. 

"Lin Manuel Miranda's coming back," Johnson confirmed to Entertainment Tonight in February 2024. "We're doing the music. Tommy Kail is our director, who directed Hamilton. You put everybody together and you want to put the best team together and then you really go for it."

Related: Moana Live-Action Movie: All About the Disney Remake Starring Dwayne Johnson

The movie started filming in Hawaii in 2024 and is expected to be released in theatres on July 10, 2026.