Lilo and Stitch (2025) Review: Disney's Most Over Hated Live Action Remake

Disney found something pretty golden back in 2002. You see in 2002, Disney was heading towards a certain downfall as films were heading towards box office lows, there was a decline in quality in some of their theme parks and they were experimenting with the future of the company and began to transition away from 2D hand drawing animation and go into the computer animation that we know today. And while this wasn’t a bad transition as they have put out some pretty great computer animated films including Big Hero 6, Wreck It Ralph and Encanto but they had a bumpy start with films like Chicken Little and The Wild. But before the few year gap where the Walt Disney Company began its decline, they had a huge golden goose that was ready to be let loose. A little animated film was coming out and its marketing tool was to use classics and add in their very new character; a character that has since 2002 gone on to make the Disney company approx. $2.5 billion dollars. They knew that once this film was going to be in theaters that the main character will be the new face of Disney and as soon as the film came out kids and every Disney adult was wearing merchandise with the character on it, buying toys of the character and most of all going to the parks just to meet this new character and for over 20 years this one little blue alien has taken over Disney so much so that he has become the most popular character in the company’s history since Mickey Mouse. This film was simply known as: Lilo and Stitch. Lilo and Stitch made Disney $273.1 million in the box office alone and the character Stitch has been an icon to the company since the film was released. Two decades later, Disney decided to bring the film back into theaters but in a different way; live action. Disney wanted to give Lilo and Stitch the “live action remake” or in their terms the “cash grab” of the year as they knew people would want to see it and it will make them more money this time around then it did back in 2002. But many people were negative towards the film before it was released as they started to notice the changes that were made even before the film came out. Obviously I will talk about said changes later on but I do need to include how much hate this remake is getting because while the film is still out at this present moment of me writing this review and by the time this review comes out it may very well still be in theaters, the film is getting mostly hated by the Disney community as many of them are giving negative comments towards certain changes in the film and I understand how they feel but I mean this is supposed to be a remake so some changes needed to be made; even though it’s kind of the same plot point from beginning to end. So now I need to ask this question: Is the Lilo and Stitch live action remake over hated or is it as bad as everyone says it is?

SPOILERS AHEAD

  Now before I could have even review this movie I needed to of course watch the original Lilo and Stitch as this is one of my favorite Disney films of all time and I needed to get a better idea of how I felt about the changes but more importantly if it ruins the original film. I don’t plan on comparing each other as once again this is a “remake” so it’s going to have a different feeling. As someone who actually so the original film in theaters back in 2002 I think I have a fair advantage of reviewing this new movie while also having my own perspective for the film itself. I mean I literally saw the film back in 2002 about 3 – 4 times as I loved it very much and begged my father to sneak into the film after we saw a different film. But when it comes to this review, much like my other Disney remake reviews, I’m going to try not to review the film by comparing it to the original.

The live action Lilo and Stitch was directed by Dean Fleischer Camp. He’s pretty new to the world of cinema as he only has directed one full length feature film before this movie and while this sounds bad as some may be thinking Disney gave one of their biggest properties to some rookie director who doesn’t know what he is doing, he actually knows what he is doing. You see Camp directed Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, a film that would be nominated for the Academy Awards for Best Animated Feature. So I guess you can say his track record at this point is on point as he became a part of a rare bunch of directors who was nominated for an Academy Award for their directorial debut on a full length feature film. Some of these names he joined included Jordan Peele, John Singleton, Orson Welles and Sam Mendes just to name a few. So to have the honor to direct a Disney live action remake and for it to be just his 2nd full length feature film, well that itself is an accomplishment that not many people say that they did and can do. The cast of this film includes Maia Kealoha (Lilo Pelelkai), Sydney Elizabeth Agudong (Nani Pelekai), Zack Galifianakis (Dr. Jumba Joobika), Billy Magnussen (Agent Wendell Pleakly), Courtney B. Vance (Cobra Bubbles), Hannah Waddingham (Grand Councilwoman), Kaipo Dudoit (David Kawena), Tia Carrere (Mrs. Kekoa), Amy Hill (Tutu) and Chris Sanders who reprised his role as the voice of Stitch. It’s also worth noting that Chris Sanders was not only the original voice of Stitch and has been the voice of Stitch since he created the character but he also is the original writer/director for the original Lilo and Stitch film. I think the whole cast did a great job in their respected roles but a couple we will talk about a bit later in the review. The character designs and CGI in this movie was actually spot on and really good. Disney has really great animators in their company and bringing these characters to live action must have been tough considering a good portion of them were computer animated aliens so the CGI in this film had to be kind of done properly to make the aliens somewhat feel life like and well I think they did a fantastic job. And of course the soundtrack and music was done beautifully as it had the original Elvis songs and original songs. Now that we have talked about the cast and some of the little things I loved about the film I think it is best we talk about the biggest change of the film, Nani and her representation in this film.

Now I know I said I didn’t want to compare the original to this version but the original does need to be mentioned a bit for this as many people who saw the live action film hate how they portray Nani’s character. A lot of this has to do with the fact that in this version of the film, Nani is seen as a much distanced sister and that has been many people’s argument. In the original film we follow along with the journey with Lilo and Stitch but Nani is a big part of this journey as she is Lilo’s guardian after their parents passed away. She’s always looking out for Lilo while also trying to do best for her but we never usually see her side of things in the film. Now in this film we do get to see her side of things as she was going to go to college for Marine Biology before her and Lilo’s parents passed away. So not only did she have to give up her possible future but she also is now trying to be a full time mother/sister to Lilo and its stressful for her. The whole thing people were upset with was that Nani would constantly not be there for important moments like she was in the original film. For example she wasn’t there for when Lilo adopts Stitch in the dog shelter. Instead this new character was added into the film and was Helping Nani take care of Lilo. Her name is Tutu and she is David’s grandmother who just happens to be neighbors with Nani and Lilo, but she is in a couple of key roles that Nani was present for in the original film. Now while I understand where everyone is coming from, I didn’t mind Nani kind of having her own sub plot and having a different representation in this live action version. I actually like that we get to see more of Nani’s struggles of being a guardian for Lilo while also being her sister but also seeing her side of things for once. We barely got that in the original film and the additional scenes and moments she had to shine really added a depth to her character. Now some people were upset with the fact that she basically was about to give away Lilo but I mean in a way she was going to do the same thing in the original film but in this version it just felt more genuine as now we have a more in depth look into her character and story and how she was struggling. Everyone that was upset with this change was angry that she basically by the end gave up her guardianship for Lilo to her neighbor and how she didn’t follow the Ohana means family and family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten but I’m sorry but to whomever feels like this little key piece of the film’s original story was broken is dragging it to be honest. She temporarily gives up her guardianship to go to college to start her future that would very likely benefit for Lilo in the future as she would be able to afford things for her sister but also she would get a pretty good job as a Marine Biologist and to many people this was her pretty much leaving Lilo behind with her neighbor who in this film is considered “Ohana” so in reality she didn’t leave her behind; she just following her path and creating a better future for not just her but her sister. I feel like we forget this feature about Nani in the original film but she was still a young adult that had to jump ship from being a full time sister to being a full time parent now as she is taking care of her only family she has left as it wasn’t just Lilo who lost everything she loved aka her parents, it was Nani too. Nani lost her life as well and had to start fresh with this new life and we really get a more better understanding of what she is going through in this film and I honestly like this direction for the film and her representation in this film because now we can honestly relate to her or at least older siblings who pretty much became guardians of their little sibling(s) and needed to give up everything to do so. Again I understand why people are upset but this is a huge change for the film that makes it different but I mean it’s not the biggest change the film had.

As some of you may know, the original Lilo and Stitch had a very small antagonist who played a key role in the TV Series as the villain to Stitch and his name was Gantu. He plays a minor role in the 3rd act of the film but prior to that he’s more of a side character. With that said as someone who grew up with the original film I have come to love Gantu’s character as he became more of a villain who is likeable because while he is a threat to Lilo and Stitch, he’s a more explored character in the TV series. With that all said, it was announced that Gantu wasn’t going to be in the film and there was going to be a different antagonist. Now obviously that means a huge change to the story had to happen as Gantu captures Stitch and Lilo and was a big part of the Galatic Federation. So who is the new antagonist for the film? The answer was the somewhat antagonist but more of an anti-hero for the original film who later became a beloved character in the franchise, Jumba. Jumba actually has a full change entirely to his character as while he still has his quirks like funny comments he makes to Pleakly, most of his characteristics are practically taken away or lessened. He doesn’t have his Russian accent no longer and he loses his compassion for Stitch after the first act as he finds a bit of hatred for his experiment and wants to make him evil. Now thinking about it, Jumba becomes a bit more evil in this film as he has nothing to lose after him and Pleakly are said to be fired from the mission so he goes on his own and causes havoc while trying to capture Stitch. Many people have a problem with the way Jumba is portrayed in this film as they believe he is more evil and less likeable in this film and while I see where they are coming from, I kind of feel like they are stuck in the past and with their nostalgia from the original film as yes Jumba is a very loveable character and has a redemption arc in the original film, he feels more like a villain here than Gantu did in the original film as Gantu really has no motive and villain characteristics that make him seem like a pure evil villain. Jumba on the other hand in this film does as Stitch costs him his job in the Federation and he causes his life to exile and becomes a huge wall to his freedom. So I kind of don’t hate this change to his character but also for him being the new antagonist for this live action film. Other people also don’t like that he and Pleakly transition to a human form and back to their alien forms but honestly I like this change as it gives the actors more to do in the film rather than just doing voice acting. Others also hated the fact that Pleakly wasn’t cross dressing but also I don’t see a huge difference as the character in this film was still dressing in women’s clothing but just without the wigs and make up. I think the biggest thing that bothered them was Jumba being a pure evil character and I get it; we don’t like when our beloved characters have a huge change in their roles but I mean it wasn’t a huge factor for the film as quite frankly it wasn’t a big deal and I actually enjoyed his character a lot in this film. What’s crazy is that he plays a bigger role as the villain than Gantu as while many like me are always going to consider Gantu as Stitch’s biggest foe, I’d give an argument for this film and the purpose of it being a “remake” that Jumba really works well for being Stitch’s foe in the film. Think about it, Jumba created Stitch in both films but he had some sort of compassion and care for his experiment in the original film, however for this film that compassion slowly goes away as mentioned before but there is also the sense of the writer’s for this version wanted to make him an evil genius who has no morals and care for anything but himself. Basically;  having Jumba being the bad guy in this film makes his intentions to bring back Stitch to the federation better for himself as he can not only continue his work and create experiments who may very well be problems and issues in the future, but he can be free and for Stitch’s case he would be experimented on by Jumba and possibly turn evil himself had Jumba fully captured him. I get that no one likes changes to beloved nostalgic moments in their lives aka Lilo and Stitch but this one works for the plot of the film just as much as Gantu being in the film but for this instance Jumba becomes more bad throughout the film because of the events that happen in the film.

Now with that said I do want to give some recognition to the story builders for this film as yes it’s the same film but with tweaks, the tweaks that they did really worked for the plot and the story. But there is one this I think I should cover as while I have said many positive things about the film that many people online have ridiculed, one thing bothered me a bit. I think Camp and the rest of the production team played it safe while making this film. Now again, I wasn’t comparing the live action to the original animated film but you can’t lie; Chris Sanders and the team for the original film kind of did a bit more when making the film from giving the characters more character to the story of the film. Now for the story for this film it’s pretty much the same but given some changes like Nani’s character given more to do in the film and having this side of her we didn’t see in the original but after that it just feels like the rest was played in a safe way when it came to changes in the story. Do all of these changes give the story depth? Well I guess it depends on how you see it. For instance, Cobra Bubbles in the original is a social worker but we later learned he used to work in the CIA. For this film his character is already in the CIA but he goes undercover to see what alien life form is living among them in Hawaii. Now I don’t think that’s so bad as we were able to also add in a new social worker played by the original voice of Nani (Tia Carree), but I feel like the whole point of Cobra’s character was that he seemed pretty unique and out of place to be a social worker as he’s a strong and menacing looking guy and to find out he used to work in the CIA kind of makes sense in the end of things. In this film it just feels like it’s the opposite and they scrambled things around to keep the pace of the story going. Another thing that kind of bothered me was the whole “Lilo beign given up” part of the film. Many fans of the original are saying that Nani gave up Lilo and she didn’t do this in the original and that’s not fully true. She actually was about to give up her guardianship to Lilo. But in the ending of the film her neighbor who pretty much was a part of the Ohana as she was kind of like an aunt to both Lilo and Nani; she would gain custody of Lilo and Nani would pursue her career path in Marine Biology and while I didn’t have a problem with all of this, I do think though this was done in a safe way as all of it could had kind of been avoided had that idea not been mentioned say halfway into the film. You see in the original film, David goes to Nani before she is about to send her with Cobra and tells her there is a place looking to hire someone and she be perfect for the job. Now you may be thinking what happened in this part of the story for the live action film?? Nothing. The social worker and Cobra come to the house and are ready to take Lilo but she isn’t there and everyone including the Tutu, Lilo and Nani’s neighbor went out to look for her. So my thing here is why wasn’t Tutu not once mentioned to be a possible guardian for Lilo even before these events happened. I mean she practically is taking care of Lilo when Nani is at work and can be obviously been mistaken as already part of the family. Yes I know Nani was doing everything to make sure Lilo wasn’t going to be taken away but why wasn’t Tutu not mentioned once as possibly being a guardian. Would it ruin the story entirely? I don’t think so as I think it could had been an idea that gets mentioned but never brought up to the social worker because of Lilo’s disappearance but I mean it was pretty obvious by the end that she was the best fit. That one thing might be a nip pick for me but I do think for other’s this could had ruined the events of the story entirely depending how you feel with that idea being brought up much earlier in the film as a possibility. In the end I didn’t hate the things that they ended up doing in a safe way but there could had been more obstruct ways the story could have had been done.

I’m not going to lie, upon all the live action Disney films I have seen, this is one of those films I actually enjoyed and liked to the point where I saw it in theaters twice. I don’t think we give enough credit to Maia Kealoha as she had a great performance in this film. Yeah it’s no Oscar worthy performance but for it being your first role in a feature film and you pretty much being one of the lead roles next to a CGI blue alien, I would say she carried the weight of this film a bit and definitely made herself memorable in the process. The same can be said about this entire cast as while not everyone in this film was perfect, quite frankly nobody was perfect, but they left a huge mark in the film and did a fantastic job. I could even see a future sequel coming out in a few years as the film has earned a profit in the box office so far and there were some hints a sequel could happen in the future as we get tiny cameos from some of Stitch’s cousins (there not really seen but blink and you’ll miss it cameos on a computer screen). I actually like that Disney didn’t change too much of the story or plot in this film with the few things they truly changed but it felt like I was re-watching the original film all over again in the theaters as I mentioned earlier I saw this film about 4 times in theaters when the original film came out so seeing this film in theaters kind of brought me back to my childhood. Hearing the opening title song to re-watching the same jokes that made me laugh then to it making me laugh now, this film was more than just your average live action remake, it was a nostalgic rollercoaster ride that had one purpose; that purpose of course was to bring Stitch to a new generation in live action form. Was it needed? Not really but I mean I didn’t see any harm from this movie to the original. So why is it over hated?

Disney is very much known for now making these live action films for money and I wouldn’t be surprised if people continue to call this film or any of the live action Disney films “cash grab films”. But I honestly think people that hate this movie, which is a lot for some reason, are kind of just over the whole live action remake craze or upset that their beloved Disney film was re-done and changed. Now look I know how they may feel, I watched Lion King and Mulan and while I did enjoy Lion King I know it was a big mess but then there is Mulan and well that movie wasn’t really over hated it’s properly hated and forgotten and one of the worse movies ever made. I think many people are just upset with the multiple changes here as I understand where they are coming from but I honestly think they are wrong. I don’t like using Rotten Tomatoes as a credible source but when the critics score is at 71% and the audience score is at 93%, it just confuses me on where all the hate for this movie is coming from. I mean maybe it’s just me but I stopped caring about my love for the originals when watching these films as yes it will pop up and irk me when a moment I love a lot in the original is not in the remake or a character is changed so much that they are a basic version of themselves but for this film I went in with actual hope and positivity for the film as I knew changes were going to be made but the biggest thing was I knew Chris Sanders, the original voice for Stitch and co-director for the original film, was going to be a part of the live action film and I knew he would have a few words about how he wanted the film. So if there was anything truly wrong in this film, he would have been the first person to say something and in the end he was proud of the film. That’s why I feel like I disagree with the many amounts of people who is saying this film sucks or that the film is disrespectful to the original film but also to how the representation of characters are flawed thanks to the changes but I think they were done properly. I’m kind of confused why this movie was over hated as I feel like everyone hyped this movie up to be one of the best live action remakes of all time for Disney and this was prior to it even having a full trailer out yet. Once the trailer came out and all the changes were finally shown and pictures of certain characters were shown then a good percent of people switched up and started bashing the film and the director for certain changes and honestly while the way Camp dealt with certain questions about Gantu not being in the film or Pleakly not being a cross dresser, I feel like yes he took a safe route but deep down he truly cared about his changes he and the production team made and they hold up well in the movie. It’s no perfect film but it’s a good introduction to young viewers to Stitch and while yes they already have that on Disney+ with the original film and series, I think taking this leap works well because it’s something new for viewers, young and old, but it’s also something fresh as it takes the franchise to look at different viewpoints for the characters. Especially for Nani as I feel like everyone hates on her “giving up” Lilo and what they think is abandoning her because she wants to fulfill her possible future that could benefit well for not just herself but also Lilo in the long run. These people hate the fact that Pleakly and Jumba turn human in this film and honestly it works out fine. No one is hating about the fact that the ugly duckling part of this film isn’t in it and you know what I like that it isn’t because yes it was a great metaphor for Stitch, I think him learning on his own from his own actions is better than the ugly duckling metaphor. Like I said before, this film feels more fresh for the franchise as a whole and I don’t think anyone should hate on this movie just because it was your childhood film and this film was re-made just because Disney wanted to make more money but with that said I think it was also made because let’s face it many people didn’t mind it back when many discussion boards were created on what Disney film should get the live action remake and I remember many people wanting this. This was honestly a good family film that I could say hit it out of the ballpark and should defiantly be respected.

Final Review: 3.5 out of 5 Stars, 75 out of 100