Disney fans were duped into believing that Moana is going to be trans in the second movie. The claim was proven to be completely false.
Moana became the latest victim of the fake news cycle after a viral TikTok video claimed she was set to transition to a male in the next movie.
The video that started the false rumor of Moana being trans
On December 10 fake news that Moana was set to be trans was established on TikTok by a popular blog called Mouse Trap News. The video has been seen over five million times and coincides with a blog post written by the blog.
The video claimed that the 2016 movie was set to have a sequel titled “Moana 2: Rise of Kai.” Its plot followed Moana transitioning from female to male, making her the first trans prince.
In the post, an edited image of Moana as a male was shown, claiming that Moana is still unhappy with her role on the island and “teams up with Maui again to find her true self.”
Moana begins her transition, the fake story claims, in the middle of the movie and selects her new name as Kai. “Throughout the rest of the movie, Kai shares his new male identity with his family and friends on the island. However, the island is ‘transphobic,’ causing her many mental health issues,” claimed the blog post.
It then claims that the village ends up accepting Moana and her new identity, fixing their “bigoted mindset” to “fully embrace” her.
TikTok users were fooled by the claim
Despite the plotline raising immediate alarm bells for many, others were duped by the viral video. Some even planned to cancel their Disney Plus membership or demanded social media ‘cancel’ Disney.
“I no longer support Disney after hearing this,” wrote one user.
“Time to cancel Disney,” added another.
The video is completely false
Mouse Trap News is self-described as being satire and admits in the bio to posting “news that is 100% fake.”
“We write fake stories about Disney Parks stuff,” reads the site’s bio. “ From Disney Park announcements to Disney Hotel and resort news to made-up Disney partnerships, you can be assured that anything you read here is not true, real, or accurate, but it is fun.”
It’s not the first time the blog has published false stories about upcoming movies and the LGBTQ+ community. In October 2023, the blog reported a false claim that Elsa would be marrying a woman in the next Frozen movie.
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