Copyright Battle Over ‘Moana’ Ends in Disney’s Favor

Disney scored a legal win as a Los Angeles jury unanimously found that the studio did not infringe on an earlier screenplay with its 2016 animated hit, Moana. After a two-week trial and just a few hours of deliberation, the eight-member jury concluded there was no direct access to the plaintiff’s script “Bucky the Wave Warrior,” undercutting his claims that key plot points and characters were borrowed. Disney’s defense team pointed to the decades-long legacy of directors John Musker and Ron Clements, emphasizing how Moana was their crowning achievement after The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, and other classics.

The plaintiff, screenwriter Buck Woodall, alleged that a former Mandeville Films development director took his materials back in 2003, then passed them along to Disney. He accused the studio of lifting crucial elements like a tattooed demigod with a giant hook and a shape-shifting creature hidden within a mountain. Disney’s attorneys countered that the film’s core premise and characters originated from extensive research on Polynesian mythology, combined with the creative vision of Musker and Clements, who’d never heard of “Bucky the Wave Warrior.”

Despite Woodall’s disappointment and his legal team hinting at possible next steps, Disney’s representatives couldn’t hide their relief. The verdict not only cements Moana’s reputation as a distinct project born from the creative well of its famed directors, it also underscores that heavy-hitting studios aren’t always at the mercy of infringement lawsuits. Meanwhile, Moana continues to find new audiences, having racked up over a billion hours of streaming, proving that the demand for the spirited Polynesian tale remains as strong as ever.