The 2026 live-action remake of Moana is now in theaters, starring Dwayne Johnson as he reprises his role as Maui after originally voicing the character in the animated movie.
Maui is a demigod with an extremely buff body and while The Rock is also extremely buff in real life, he didn’t quite have the necessary physique to play the character when it came time for filming.
Dwayne has confirmed that he wore a bodysuit in Moana to achieve Maui’s body.
Why Dwayne Johnson wears a bodysuit in live-action Moana movie
Dwayne started filming Moana immediately after he wrapped production on the indie movie The Smashing Machine, in which he played a UFC fighter throughout the ups and downs of his career.
“I went from Smashing Machine and I was 50 lbs. heavier than I am now,” Dwayne told E! News, adding that he had “no time to change my body.”
“We were considering me just stepping on set how I looked in the Smashing Machine, but the body was just intensely different,” he added. “We are the keepers of integrity, but also the fans are keepers of integrity, and if I stepped on set looking like how I looked, they would have had a complete organ rejection.”
Dwayne wore a 40 pound bodysuit while filming the movie.
Dwayne said, “It also worked out great because of visual effects, because the tattoos are alive. So it was easier for [the visual effects team] and a better treat for audiences to see it on the suit.”
Read what critics are saying about the movie.
Posted To:Disney Dwayne Johnson Moana Movies The Rock
