WATCH: 'Moana' director tells us why he 'always' wants to work with NZ actors

If there’s one thing Hollywood has learned from the live-action reimagining of 'Moana', it’s that Kiwi actors are in a league of their own.

Director Thomas Kail told us all about casting breakout star Catherine Laga‘aia, who snatched the role of Moana from a massive pool of 32,000 global submissions - including two from her own sisters. 

But beyond finding his lead, Kail found himself surrounded by a cast packed with legendary Kiwi talent, from Jemaine Clement to Rena Owen, Frankie Adams and John Tui. The 'Hamilton' director says the experience has changed him for good. 

"I want to always work with New Zealand actors," Kail said, praising the unique energy they brought to the set. 

"There was so much commitment to the work, so much dignity, and so much pride in the work".

For Kail, directing Kiwi acting royalty was a total full-circle moment. He recalled first meeting Kiwi icon Jemaine Clement back in 2004 at a comedy festival.

"He was doing 'Flight of the Conchords'... and we were like, 'Who are these two guys sitting on stools and why are they better than all of us?'" Kail laughed. 

Decades later, getting to collaborate with him and the rest of the Kiwi cast of 'Moana' was "a total joy".

"I was so deeply impressed by the energy that stepped into every scene because it was full commitment," he said. "Like, 'Let’s go until they pull us away from it'".

Of course, having a set full of New Zealanders meant the American director was bound to get a bit of a cultural schooling. Catherine Laga‘aia, daughter of New Zealand acting legend Jay Laga‘aia, admitted she loved watching the American crew completely flounder while trying to decode Kiwi slang like 'chur'. 

"You would get like, 'Oh, maybe it's like churning something? Maybe it's a part of a car? Maybe it's like a job title?' And it's like, no, none of those." 

Discovering that Kail still "absolutely did not" understand what chur meant, we were able to explain that the multi-purpose phrase ultimately means thank you. 

It was a fitting way to thank him for helping Catherine, Dwyane 'The Rock' Johnson and the rest of the cast represent Pacific cultures on the world stage through the beloved story of 'Moana'.