Moana 2 opens in theaters this week, just in time for the time-honored tradition of Thanksgiving movies. The sequel follows the most streamed movie on Disney+ with a new adventure starring Moana (Auli’i Cravalho) and Maui (Dwayne Johnson).

The first film introduced Moana as the next in line to lead the people of Motunui, which is interpreted in Western media as a princess of sorts; in the sequel, her adventures continue as she learns how to be a leader. And yes, that is very reminiscent of a royal man in training, if by royal we mean the next chef and signage in the making. Yes, Moana is officially listed as a canon member of the Disney Princess lineup for that reason, but her status really needs to be interpreted.

Moana voice actress Auli’i Cravalho spoke to Entertainment Weekly about the Disney Princess discourse regarding her character. “Films are always representative of their time. Today we want a young woman to be the hero of her own story. So yes, she’s a princess, but she’s also a hero. I like that those two words are now interchangeable.”

It makes a little more sense that Disney Princesses and Frozen’The Royal Queens (Anna and Elsa don’t count as princesses) are separate Disney heroine categories, a classification that, let’s face it, is mostly about selling toys under different banners.

Fortunately, Moana’s appearance will always remain thematically appropriate to her unique story; according to Cravalho, “You probably won’t see Moana in a ball gown. And that’s fine.”

Moana 2 addresses the same “princess or not?” question in a very meta way, with Moana claiming she’s not a princess and Maui pointing out that a lot of people think she is. And so she will remain Disney Princess Moana of Motunui, head guardian and signpost.

Moana 2 opens in theaters this week and Moana is now streaming on Disney+.

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