A film worker is suing Disney for $10 billion, claiming the "Moana" franchise shares "breathtaking" similarities to work he once pitched to a production studio.

Animator Buck Woodall is suing Disney for $10 billion after he said he shared film materials in 2003 while working on a development deal with the company.

Animator Buck Woodall has filed a $10 billion lawsuit against Disney, claiming the company copied elements of his animated project Bucky for Moana and Moana 2.

Animator Buck Woodall filed the suit in California on Friday (US time), seeking damages of at least US$10 billion ($17.9b) for the fact Disney allegedly stole elements of a screenplay he wrote in the early 2000s.

Buck Woodall claims awards contender stole ideas from a screenplay he wrote, while Disney says the works aren't similar.

Animator Buck Woodall claims former Mandeville Films development director Jenny Marchick passed his "substantially similar" screenplay to Disney years before "Moana" premiered.

Animator Buck Woodall has sued Disney, alleging the company copied elements of his screenplay for "Bucky" to create "Moana" and its sequel.

Disney has been hit with a copyright lawsuit alleging that the popular Moana franchise was lifted from a decades-old screenplay without the writer's consent. The writer is now suing for $10billion in a new copyright claim.

Animator Buck Woodall claims that film producer Jenny Marchick fed his original idea for a film titled 'Bucky' to Disney, which ultimately produced 'Moana' in 2016