Stars of movies Moana and Supergirl came from same Sydney high school

It is relatively unusual for a hometown to have one global screen star — let alone two.

Newtown in Sydney's inner west has done just that, represented on the big screen by two young women.

Hung on a local cinema's walls are movie posters featuring 19-year-old Catherine Lagaʻaia, who plays Moana in the Disney live-action remake, and Milly Alcock, 26, who portrays the feisty Supergirl.

Audiences could watch both locals on the big screen on the same day, which is rare.

Before they shot to fame, they started their acting journey at Newtown High School of Performing Arts.

Moana in the making

The school, which opened in 1990, accepts general admissions and also audition intakes for students wanting a strong focus on performing arts.

Head drama teacher, Daniel Kavanagh, said he remembered auditioning Lagaʻaia, who showed the necessary qualities.

"The ability to listen and collaborate and use creativity in a lot of the activities that we were doing ... It wasn't so much the acting skills," he said.

"You're looking at 11-year-old students and you're trying to ascertain whether or not you think they've got talent or not."

He said 'Katie', daughter of singer and actor Jay Lagaʻaia, was a high-achiever.

"She's always really bright, really positive, really keen to work, very intelligent, and she had such a keen sense of all of the units of work that we did,"

Mr Kavanagh said.

Rise of Supergirl

Alcock was in Year 11 when Mr Kavanagh joined the school's faculty about 10 years ago.

"She was very measured and very thoughtful, and ... she was very analytical in terms of her approach," he said.

"In hindsight, it was pretty obvious that she really had the makings of a film actor because she was always observing things and being quiet and taking notes."

The school has a program that allows students to study overseas during the holidays.

"She was one of the students who was really keen on that opportunity, but wasn't necessarily able to afford that," Mr Kavanagh said.

"We actually also offered her a partial scholarship to attend that study tour to the UK.

"She just lit up in all those workshops and just was so keen to participate in all the things we got to do while we were in the UK, learning with all these different theatre companies and practitioners."

Juggling school and stardom

He said the opportunity for Lagaʻaia to play Moana came at an inconvenient time, as it often did for students, but the school worked with her, the tutors, and family to make it work.

"She did have to go off to film in the middle of her Higher School Certificate (HSC) year, and so we were having her emailing assessment tasks back and forth," Mr Kavanagh said.

"She did end up having to sit her HSC exams while she was over in the US through special arrangement with the New South Wales Education Standards Authority.

"She was really committed to making sure that she did that because some students might have just gone, 'You know what, it's just too hard, I'll put it off and I'll come back later'."

He said Lagaʻaia remained calm and graduated in 2025.

"She just made sure that she was still being normal and being a student and part of the culture at school and not kind of falling into the insanity that those sorts of situations can affect,"

Mr Kavanagh said.

During Alcock's studies, an opportunity landed at her doorstep in 2019 to star alongside Tim Minchin in television series Upright, about an unlikely pair trying to transport a piano through the desert.

"The timing of that meant that she wasn't able to finish off her HSC the way most of our students do, and that's a shame," Mr Kavanagh said.

"At the time, we did what we could to try and help support her, but it just didn't work out that way."

She finished with her schooling in 2018.

Alcock went on to play young Rhaenyra Targaryen in HBO's series, House of the Dragon, before starring as Simone DeWitt in the American black comedy television series Sirens alongside acting veterans Julianne Moore and Kevin Bacon.

She then transformed into Supergirl in the latest film in the DC Universe.

Mr Kavanagh said the public school did not have the same resources as some private ones, but its strength lies with the "really strong staff", including six drama teachers.

Community pride

Dendy Newtown Cinema general manager, Elliott Collins, said seeing the area represented by locals was "super special" and a big topic of conversation.

"To see two former students in the title roles of films as big as Supergirl and Moana is a real celebration of the community," he said.

"It's a great reminder that world-class talent can come from right here in Newtown."

Mr Collins said the films were popular with employees and the community because of the local connection.

"We've also got on our staff a few Newtown High alumni and obviously a lot of actors, so to see Catherine and Milly in these huge Hollywood roles is something to look up to and something that the community, I think, is very proud of," he said.

For Mr Kavanagh, seeing posters for both films during a recent visit to the cinema was a "proud teacher moment".