• Auli'i Cravalho told People she bought a house for her mom after her acting career flourished.
• Cravalho said that before filming "Moana" in 2016, her mother could only afford a one-bedroom apartment.
• Cravalho said that her mother is "happily retired" now.

Auli'i Cravalho described how voicing Moana, the breakout Disney princess, transformed her life and lifted her from poverty in Hawaii.

Cravalho shot to fame in 2016 after voicing the lead in "Moana," Disney's highest-grossing animated princess movie other than the "Frozen" titles.

She was 16 when it premiered — and told People that before the movie, she was living on food stamps.

"Moana" made $643 million globally in ticket sales, and the sequel, which launched over Thanksgiving, is looking to top that, grossing some $386 million in a few days.

Cravalho, now 24, said in the interview that before "Moana" she was living in a one-bedroom apartment in Mililani, north of Honolulu.

"I slept in the bedroom, my mom slept on the couch. She gave me everything," Cravalho said. They used food stamps to get by, she said.

"Moana" was a success and landed her the title role in its sequel. It also launched Cravalho into a TV and screen career that included a spot in the "Mean Girls" reboot.

It hasn't been reported how much Cravalho has earned from either "Moana" movies or the rest of her career. She said she used some of the proceeds to buy her mom a house.

"She's happily retired," Cravalho said. "Your parents give you so much. Kids feel a little indebted, I'm going to be honest! But we feel so grateful for our parents' sacrifices."

Last month, Cravalho told the "Podcrushed" podcast that she became the "breadwinner" for her family, which is often the case for child stars and former child stars.

This family includes her father, Dwayne — not her costar, Dwayne Johnson — who divorced Cravalho's mother, Puanani when she was a child.

Cravalho said during the interview that she delayed attending college, fearing she couldn't afford to take a break from acting.

"I'm a smidge worried about taking a break and doing all four years. I've budgeted it all out. I'd make it, but it would be close," Cravalho said. "I look forward to doing that in the next decade when I feel more secure."

• Disney's "Moana 2" set a new five-day Thanksgiving box office record with $221 million in sales.
• The previous record was held by "Frozen II," which brought $125 million in 2019.
• "Moana 2," "Wicked," and "Gladiator II" contributed to the $420 million in box office sales over Thanksgiving.

"Moana 2" made a big splash at the box office over Thanksgiving weekend.

The highly anticipated sequel to the 2016 Disney film has brought in $221 million in domestic ticket sales since opening on Wednesday — the first day of the five-day Thanksgiving weekend — based on studio estimates.

The film broke the five-day Thanksgiving box office record, surpassing the $125 million record set by "Frozen II" in 2019. Before that, the title was held by "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire," which brought in $109.9 million in 2013.

The Thanksgiving box office weekend has also seen the continued success of "Wicked" and "Gladiator II" — both of which were released on November 22.

Like "Barbenheimer," fans have dubbed the movies "Glicked" thanks to their coincidental release date.

During the five-day Thanksgiving period, "Wicked" — which stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo — brought in $117.5 million domestically, while "Gladiator II" — which stars Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington, and Pedro Pascal — earned $44 million, based on estimates from IMDB's Box Office Mojo.

The three films contributed to the $420 million raked in over the five-day period — the best-ever Thanksgiving box office sales, surpassing the $315.6 million record set over the same period in 2018, according to Comscore data, per NBC.

Based on studio estimates, "Moana 2" has made $386 million globally so far.

In 2016, "Moana" also topped box offices on Thanksgiving weekend with $81 million in ticket sales.

It was released on Disney+ in 2019 and was the most-watched movie on a streaming platform in the US in 2023, with over 11.3 billion minutes streamed, per data from Nielsen.

A representative from Comscore did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent by Business Insider outside regular hours.

• Auli'i Cravahlo told "Podcrushed" about deferring a Columbia University place in favor of her career.
• She said she was wary of halting her acting journey because she was the "breadwinner" for her family.
• Actors including Glen Powell and Anne Hathaway have also paused their education for their careers.

Auli'i Cravalho, the voice of Moana, said she decided to pause her education aspiration over fears her acting career would lose steam.

Cravalho began her acting career at 14, debuting as Disney's first Polynesian princess in 2016's "Moana." The film was nominated for two Oscars and grossed $643 million worldwide.

Since then, Cravalho has voice-acted in several TV shows and video games, starred in films including 2024's "Mean Girls," and appeared in multiple stage shows.

Still, Moana is her most popular role as she prepares to return the character in "Moana 2," which is out next week.

Appearing on the "Podcrushed" podcast to promote the movie, Cravalho spoke about being accepted to Columbia University in 2021 to study environmental science.

The actor told Scary Mommy last year she'd deferred her place because she was "so scared that the industry would just move on and forget about me."

"There is a sense of the train is moving and do I bring it to a halt because I know for a fact that I'm not able to focus on those two things at once," Cravalho said in this week's interview. "I know I would have to pause one or give less of myself to the other, which doesn't feel fair."

Cravalho told Scary Mommy and The Cut last year she now has to reapply to Columbia because she deferred her place too many times.

Many actors and musicians have paused or dropped out of college to pursue careers. Celebrities like Glen Powell, Anne Hathaway, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Timothée Chalamet have been successful in doing so.

Powell is finishing his degree at the University of Texas this year after becoming one of Hollywood's brightest new stars.

Cravalho said she still wants to return to her degree and would be the first in her immediate family to go to college.

"I'm also the breadwinner for my family," she said. "I'm a smidge worried about taking a break and doing all four years. I've budgeted it all out. I'd make it, but it would be close. I look forward to doing that in the next decade when I feel more secure."

The number of people enrolling for undergraduate degrees fell from 18 million to 15.4 million between 2010 and 2021, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

Although the center said enrollment rose last year for the first time since the pandemic, higher education appears to be losing its appeal for some young people.

In May, Deloitte published a survey of 14,468 Gen Z and 8,373 millennials across 44 countries about their attitudes toward the world and their financial conditions.

It found that a third of respondents had chosen to skip higher education, citing financial barriers as the prime reason.

In 2023, Business Insider, in collaboration with YouGov, surveyed more than 1,800 Americans across five generations, including more than 600 Gen Z respondents above the age of 18, and found that 46% of Gen Z respondents didn't think college was worth the cost.

That poses a challenge for colleges and universities.

Joseph Fuller, a professor at Harvard Business School and co-lead of its "Managing the Future of Work" initiative, told BI last year: "They're going to have to work to demonstrate to potential students that graduates of their programs can enjoy success and a lifestyle that will support income level and support a household with a decent lifestyle."