Disney accused of Moana-based copyright infringement, again
How far will animator Buck Woodall go to prove that Disney stole his idea for Moana and Moana 2? At least as far as court. Reviving allegations that Disney stole the idea for Moana from Woodall's screenplay for his animated feature Bucky, Woodall filed a lawsuit against Disney for allegedly copying story and character beats from Bucky and incorporating them into Moana and Moana 2. Bucky also follows a group of youngsters in an ancient Polynesian village, defying their elders, embarking on an epic adventure, and facing off against shapeshifting demigods. Disney has denied the charges.
The lawsuit goes to great pains to lay out all the different tendrils of the Disney corporation. In doing so, Woodall's lawyers accuse it of willfully obfuscating its properties through various subsidiaries, such as Walt Disney Pictures and Television, Walt Disney Television Animation, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Mandeville Films, and Buena Vista Home Entertainment, for "the sole and exclusive purpose of hiding documents, hiding evidence, hiding money and masking the modus operandi of the Walt Disney Company, during all times material hereto, of stealing and pirating the intellectual property of others." Even more specifically, Woodall says he provided Jenny Marchick, former Mandeville Films director of development (and current DreamWorks Animation head of development) with the screenplay and trailer for Bucky in 2003 and that she asked for more materials, claiming she could get the film greenlit. Marchick admitted under oath that she handed some copyrighted materials "to an individual at Disney Animation TV" before developing Moana.
Woodall attempted to sue Disney in 2022 over the similarities, but the court dismissed the case due to the expiration of the statute of limitations. However, in that case, Woodall predicted that Moana was the beginning of a "longstanding, multi-billion-dollar franchise" that would use his materials. Moana 2, which Woodall claims also contains elements of Bucky, allowed him to revive the case.
Woodall seeks 2.5% of Moana 2's gross revenue, or roughly $10 billion, and a court order to prevent further infringement. Since its release in November 2024, Moana 2 has grossed $989 million worldwide.