The casting for the role of Sina in “Vaiana” is secretly perfect after the actor’s famous sci-fi role

The casting for the live-action Vaiana – The wonderful world of loveSina is a secretly perfect casting. Sina is the mother of the protagonist Moana and the wife of Chief Tui, Moana's father. Along with Tui, Sina helps teach her daughter the Motunui way of life and encourages her to follow the chief's rules by staying within the boundaries of the Motunui Reef. In the 2016 version Vaiana – The wonderful world of love, Sina is voiced by Nicole Scherzinger. Scherzinger will reprise her role as voice actress for the upcoming sequel Vaiana 2 – The Great Adventurewhich will be released in cinemas on November 27th.

After Vaiana 2 – The Great AdventureThe universe of Motunui and beyond will be explored once again in the form of a live-action remake of Vaiana – The wonderful world of loveDwayne Johnson will return to his role as demigod Maui, but most of the live action Vaiana – The wonderful world of love The cast includes new actors. Sina is one of the newly cast roles, played by Frankie Adams. At first glance, Adams does not seem to be the most conventional choice for the Vaiana – The wonderful world of love part, considering their previous experiences.

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The recasting of Moana as a live-action role repeats the brilliant decision of the animated film

There were many reasons why 2016's Moana was such an incredible success for Disney, and the new live-action remake takes advantage of one of those reasons.

Frankie Adams' role as Moana in the live-action is very different from her character in The Expanse

Frankie Adams played Roberta “Robbie” Draper in “The Expanse”

Adams is best known for her role as Roberta “Bobbie” Draper in The vastness. Adams made her debut in the series at the beginning of the second season and continued her work on the show until The vastnessSeason 6 of “The 40 Years of War” ends in 2021. Bobbie was a former Gunnery Sergeant in the Martian Marine Corps and serves as the Secretary General’s Special Envoy as a dockworker at the Mariner Valley shipyard throughout most of the sci-fi series.

As a character, Draper is a fighter who has been involved in numerous violent battles. She was a great force in encouraging the Martians to go to war against the UN to protect her people. Sina has a very different attitude than Draper, as she promotes peace in Motunuiand wants to prevent violence and war. That makes Vaiana – The wonderful world of loveFor Adams, Sina's role is a character challenge because he has to take on a completely different role.

Sina from Moana and Draper from The Expanse actually have some common traits

The characters have similar motivations

Despite the differences between the peacemaker and the fighter, Sina and Draper actually have more in common than one might think. Although their actions manifest themselves differently, both characters are very loyal to their homeland. For Draper, this manifests itself in the form of Martian nationalism, while Sina is committed to protecting Motunui. This central motivation gives the strong female characters a common drive that drives the characters in their respective films. The similar sensitivity makes Adams the perfect choice for Vaiana – The wonderful world of love's Sina finally.

Moana (2026)

director

Thomas Kail

Release date

July 10, 2025

Authors

Ron Clements, John Musker, Chris Williams, Don Hall, Pamela Ribon, Aaron Kandell, Jordan Kandell, Jared Bush, Dana Ledoux Miller

Pour

Dwayne Johnson, Catherine Laga'aia, Frankie Adams, John Tui, Rena Owen

Main genre

adventure