Disney Live-action Lilo & Stitch teaser reveals familiar Stitch with unchanged design

Disney's live-action Lilo & Stitch teaser shows a familiar Stitch, sparking nostalgia but limited excitement.

Disney's first teaser for the live-action Lilo & Stitch has been released, featuring a familiar face in the form of Stitch, who looks nearly identical to his original animated version. The brief teaser doesn't provide much new information about the film, as the character remains largely unchanged, which may spark nostalgia among fans but fail to generate much excitement. Stitch’s antics, while humorous in the original 2002 film, now come across as somewhat less fresh.

The plot of Lilo & Stitch, as described by Disney, remains the same: the story follows a lonely Hawaiian girl, Lilo, and an alien named Stitch, who helps her heal her broken family. In the live-action film, Lilo will be portrayed by newcomer Maia Kealoha, while Chris Sanders, who voiced Stitch in the original animated film, will reprise the role. The film will be directed by Dean Fleischer Camp, known for Marcel the Shell with Shoes On, and features a supporting cast including Zach Galifianakis, Billy Magnussen, Sydney Agudong, and Tia Carrere.

The teaser, which will likely play before screenings of Moana 2, uses bright tropical imagery and a humorous scene of Stitch destroying a sandcastle. However, the question arises: with such little change to Stitch’s design, how much of an impact can this live-action remake truly have? This trend of minimal updates in live-action remakes—seen in projects like How To Train Your Dragon and Moana—is becoming a common critique. While the film promises more merchandise opportunities and nostalgia for longtime fans, many are left questioning the need for such exact replications of the original films.

The live-action Lilo & Stitch is set to be released on May 23, 2025.