Introduction
Catherine Laga’aia is the young Australian actress who stepped into one of Disney’s most beloved roles when she was cast as Moana in the live-action remake of the 2016 animated classic. Before this film, she was almost completely unknown, with only a few small screen credits to her name. Disney searched the world and reviewed more than 32,000 hopefuls before choosing her, and in July 2026 she appeared on cinema screens beside Dwayne Johnson as the brave wayfinder from the island of Motunui. Her story is one of talent, family, heritage, and a remarkable amount of courage for someone so young.
Early Life and Family Background
Catherine Laga’aia was born on 17 December 2006 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Friends and family call her Katie. She is 19 years old in 2026, but she was only 17 when she was cast and throughout the filming of Moana, which makes her one of the youngest leading actresses in Disney’s series of live-action remakes.
She comes from a family that lives and breathes performance. Her father is Jay Laga’aia, a New Zealand-born actor and singer who has built a long career in Australia. He is known around the world for playing Captain Typho in Star Wars: Episode II and Episode III, and for his role as Draco in Xena: Warrior Princess. Her mother, Sandra Jane, known as Sandie, was the one who encouraged Catherine to audition for Moana and later travelled with her during production.
Catherine is one of eight children, and several of her siblings also perform. Her older brother Iosefa has worked in musical theatre and appeared in the Australian production of Hamilton, playing both George Washington and Aaron Burr. Two of her sisters, Isabella and Georgia, also sent in their own audition tapes for Moana. Catherine has shared that both were thrilled when she won the role. Despite her growing fame, she keeps her personal life private, and details such as her earnings from the film have never been made public.
Samoan Heritage and Australian Roots
Catherine Laga’aia is Australian by birth and upbringing, and she is of Samoan and English descent. Her Samoan roots come through her father’s side of the family, and she speaks about them with great pride. When Disney announced her casting, she shared that her grandfather comes from Fa’aala in Palauli on the island of Savai’i, and her grandmother is from Leulumoega Tuai on the main island of ‘Upolu in Samoa.
Because Samoa is part of Polynesia, Catherine is a Polynesian actress playing a Polynesian heroine, which made her casting deeply meaningful to fans of the original film. She said she felt honoured to celebrate Samoa and all Pacific Island peoples, and to represent young girls who look like her. The supporting cast, including John Tui, Rena Owen, and Frankie Adams, also reflects Pacific heritage.
Education and Early Career
Before Moana arrived, Catherine was a regular high school student in Sydney who also worked a part-time job at the retail store Target. She has joked that she was not very good at that job and admitted that the idea of landing a Disney lead seemed so unlikely that she almost did not audition at all.
Her acting experience at the time was very limited. Her most notable credit was a small part in the 2023 Prime Video miniseries The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, based on Holly Ringland’s bestselling novel. The series starred Oscar nominee Sigourney Weaver, and Catherine appeared in three episodes as the younger version of a character named Candy.
When she was cast, she was in Year 12, the final year of high school in New South Wales, and still had to complete her Higher School Certificate exams. Her teachers and on-set tutors helped her keep up, sending assignments and exams back and forth by email. She reportedly sat an English exam on the very first day of filming and finished her final exams in a trailer in Los Angeles, with her tutor’s golden retriever keeping her company.
The Road to Becoming Moana
Dwayne Johnson announced the live-action Moana in April 2023, and Thomas Kail, the director behind the filmed version of Hamilton, was hired the following month. Casting was delayed by the 2023 actors’ strike, but once it resumed, Disney opened a worldwide search that attracted more than 32,000 applicants.
Catherine sent in a tape with her mother’s encouragement and moved through the rounds until she was flown to New York for a screen test directed by Kail himself. Disney officially announced her as Moana on 12 June 2024. The news seemed so unbelievable that some of her friends first thought it was a fake created with artificial intelligence.
Filming in Atlanta and Hawaii
Production began in Atlanta, Georgia, on 29 July 2024 and wrapped in Hawaii on 22 November 2024. For Catherine, this meant many months away from home, balancing rehearsals, sailing and action training, singing sessions, and schoolwork all at once.
Hawaii gave the production real oceans, beaches, and open water for the sailing scenes, helping bring the world of Motunui to life. Catherine later described the whole experience as feeling like being hit by a wave of new things at once.
Singing and the Music of Moana
Catherine performs her own singing in the film. Fans first heard her voice in the teaser trailer released in November 2025, where she sang the famous anthem How Far I’ll Go and closed with the powerful line announcing herself as Moana.
Lin-Manuel Miranda returned to write a brand-new song for the remake called Along the Way, which plays during the end credits. Catherine sings it together with Auli’i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson. She has said she recorded her part before the other two had recorded theirs, which made her nervous knowing they would both hear her sing.
Interestingly, Catherine did not see herself as a singer before this film. Growing up among talented singing siblings, she chose acting as her own path, and she has said she discovered her love of singing through Moana.
Working with Dwayne Johnson and Auli’i Cravalho
Dwayne Johnson returned as the demigod Maui and also produced the film. Like Catherine, he is of Samoan descent, and he has spoken about how personal this story is to him because of his late grandfather, High Chief Peter Maivia. Their partnership gave the film a strong cultural connection, with an experienced global star and a first-time lead sharing a Polynesian story on screen. The two are not related, although they share the same heritage.
Auli’i Cravalho, who voiced Moana in both animated films, served as an executive producer on the remake. Rather than any rivalry, their relationship has been one of support. Cravalho praised Catherine warmly and described her casting as passing the baton to the next young woman of colour.
Reception of the Live-Action Moana and What Comes Next
The live-action Moana opened in cinemas on 10 July 2026, marking the tenth anniversary of the original. Critics were largely unimpressed, with many feeling the remake came too soon after the animated version, but audiences were far kinder and rated it highly. Many viewers singled out Catherine as one of the film’s greatest strengths.
At the box office, the film opened to around 43 million dollars in the United States and earned roughly 315 million dollars worldwide against a reported budget of about 250 million dollars, well below the animated film’s global total of around 684 million dollars. It arrived on digital platforms in September 2026.
Catherine has already lined up her next project. In February 2026, it was announced that she will lead Crashout, a darkly comic Australian thriller written and directed by Nick Annas. The story follows three high school graduates who are stranded on a remote highway after a fatal accident and try to cover it up by faking a found-footage film. Leviticus star Joe Bird joins her in the cast, and filming was planned to begin in Australia in March 2026.
Conclusion
Catherine Laga’aia’s journey from a Sydney high school student with a part-time retail job to the star of a Disney film is truly inspiring. She beat more than 32,000 hopefuls, finished her final school exams while filming a major Hollywood movie, discovered her singing voice, and proudly represented Samoa and the wider Pacific community on a global stage. While the live-action Moana did not match the success of the original animated film, it introduced the world to a promising young talent. With Crashout on the way, Catherine is already showing that her career will stretch far beyond one Disney role, and at just 19, her voyage has only just begun.
