Moana 2? Toy Story 5? Disney is getting desperate

Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter for all the latest entertainment news and reviews Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. When Disney announced, on Wednesday, that the hit children’s animation Moana will be getting a theatrically released sequel, it felt less like a victory lap than an act of desperation. And Disney didn’t stop there: studio boss Bob Iger also announced release dates for Toy Story 5, Zootopia 2 and Frozen 3, among others. Significantly, Musker and Clements are absent from the sequel, having parted ways with Disney after four decades; missing, too, is Lin-Manuel Miranda, the Hamilton songwriter responsible for much of the original’s musical effervescence. If there’s one big positive to take from Moana2’s reimaging as a feature film, it’s that Disney honchos seem to be losing faith – to some extent, at least – in the inherent wisdom of the straight-to-streaming business model.