’s role as Moana not only launched her acting career but also changed her and her family’s lives.
The actress, 24, opened up about her childhood in an interview with People published on Saturday, November 30, revealing that she grew up on food stamps on the Big Island and Oahu, in Hawaii. “We lived in a one-bedroom apartment in Mililani when I was cast,” she shared. “I slept in the bedroom, my mom slept on the couch. She gave me everything.”
Cravalho was 14 years old when she booked her role as the titular Disney princess of 2016’s Moana and was 16 at the time of the animated movie’s release. The film’s success allowed Auli’i to give back to her mother, , in a special way. “I bought my mommy a house. She’s happily retired,” Auli’i told the outlet.
With the recent release of Moana 2, Auli’i is feeling thankful for the impact both of her parents — who divorced when she was young — have had on her over the years. “Your parents give you so much. Kids feel a little indebted, I’m going to be honest!” she stated. “But we feel so grateful for our parents’ sacrifices.”
It was with the help of her parents that Auli’i was able to stay grounded as she entered the entertainment industry. “My parents were like, ‘Listen, if [Moana] doesn’t go anywhere, you need to finish high school,’” she shared. “’You need to do the dishes. You need to fix your bed. Don’t let it get to your head.’”
According to Auli’i, she sometimes acted like a “little s—” and a “little Gremlin” when forced to do homework after doing press for Moana. “I’m going to be honest, I didn’t have anything left,” she explained. “Sometimes people talk about being a Disney kid, and I think so much of it is giving all of your energy to a project and then having nothing in reserve for yourself.”
However, her mother shut down that behavior “real quick.” Auli’i told the outlet: “That was some tough parenting in allowing me to grow as a human, but also looking me in the eye and saying, ‘You need to be kind and you need to be kind to me.’ It was at those moments that I realized, ‘OK, I can’t give all of myself.’”
Auli’i followed up her film debut with roles in projects such as Rise, Crush, Darby and the Dead, The Power and Mean Girls and made her Broadway debut as Sally Bowles in Cabaret in September. She reprised her role as Moana in 2018’s Ralph Breaks the Internet before returning for Moana 2.
Set a few years after the original film, Moana 2 follows Moana as she is joined by the demigod Maui () and a new crew of adventurers on a mission to reunite her people across the ocean.
Back in July, Auli’i exclusively told Us Weekly that it was “such a joy” to be back on the big screen as Moana, adding, “I am turning 24 this year and getting to come back to this character has been really lovely. I get to sing songs that are Disney-fied, but again, there’s also growth in a character and I think it’s so special that for the first time we get to see a Disney princess grow up.”
Moana 2 is in theaters now.
