Disney Takes STAGGERING Loss as Woke Remake Strategy Implodes

Liberty Check

• Disney’s live-action ‘Moana’ remake bombed spectacularly with only $43 million opening weekend despite a massive $250 million budget
• The studio faces a projected $150 million loss, following the catastrophic $170 million failure of ‘Snow White’
• Hollywood’s obsession with ‘representation’ over quality storytelling continues to alienate audiences and destroy shareholder value

The corporate bean-counters at Disney are learning a painful lesson: Americans won’t pay good money to watch recycled garbage dressed up with political messaging.

For nearly a decade, Disney has abandoned original storytelling in favor of strip-mining its beloved animated catalog for lazy “live-action” remakes. While some succeeded commercially — the 2019 “Lion King” inexplicably made $1.7 billion worldwide, and 2025’s “Lilo & Stitch” topped $1 billion — these wins are now drowning in a sea of catastrophic failures.

The live-action “Moana” just became the latest casualty of Disney’s woke remake strategy.

Disney dumped a staggering $250 million into production costs alone, not counting at least $100 million in marketing. That’s a $350 million investment requiring roughly $700 million in box office revenue just to break even after theater splits.

The opening weekend delivered a humiliating $43 million domestically.

Industry tracking suggests opening weekends typically account for 40% of total domestic box office. If that holds, “Moana” will limp to just $107 million domestically — a far cry from the original 2016 film’s $248 million (equivalent to $346.5 million adjusted for inflation).

Disney projected $60-$65 million for the opening weekend and $140 million globally. The film came up nearly $50 million short, earning just $95 million total worldwide.

Analysts now predict Disney will lose at least $150 million on “Moana,” rivaling the $170 million catastrophe of last year’s “Snow White” remake starring the insufferable Rachel Zegler.

What went wrong? Everything.

Critics and audiences immediately spotted the cheap effort. Dwayne Johnson’s laughable wig, atrocious special effects, and obviously fake desaturated backgrounds bore no resemblance to the vibrant world of the beloved original — which is only 10 years old and easily accessible on streaming.

Moviegoers recognized the shameless cash grab.

Then came Johnson’s predictable virtue-signaling. During a recent red carpet interview, he couldn’t resist injecting identity politics into the conversation, telling Variety that “Moana” matters for its “representation and visibility.”

“‘Indiana Jones’ inspired me. When I was 8 years old watching Harrison Ford, I was like, ‘I want to be that guy,’ but that guy didn’t look like me,” Johnson explained.

The comment epitomizes Hollywood’s obsession with superficial identity pandering over quality storytelling. Johnson became one of the most famous and successful actors in modern entertainment precisely because millions of people who don’t share his ethnicity connected with his wrestling character and enjoyed his performances.

Should audiences who aren’t “represented” in “Moana” skip the film? Is pandering the only reason it exists?

Disney is rapidly running out of animated classics to plunder and remake. They’re overspending on bloated budgets and marketing campaigns, only to watch their own talent undermine promotional efforts with off-putting political messaging.

New leadership at the top of Disney Corporation faces a critical test. Their first priority should be ending the era of lazy, politically-motivated remakes and banning the word “representation” from every corner of the company.

Shareholders and audiences alike are demanding better. The market has spoken loudly: woke remakes lose money.

Americans deserve better.