The film tells the story of two individuals: an orphaned Hawaiian girl namedLilo Pelekai, who is raised by her struggling older sister,Nani, after their parents' deaths, and the genetically engineeredextraterrestrial creatureExperiment 626, whom Lilo adopts as her "dog" and renames "Stitch". Stitch, who was designed to cause chaos and destruction, initially uses Lilo to avoid recapture by an intergalactic federation. They develop a close bond through the Hawaiian concept ofʻohana, orextended family, causing Stitch to reconsider his intended destructive purpose, to keep his newfound family together.
The film is based on an idea by Sanders, who originally conceived Stitch in 1985, and the film's design and aesthetics are based on his personal art style. Stitch was initially at the center of a children's book Sanders had conceptualized, but later abandoned. A feature-length film starring the character entered development in 1997 whenThomas Schumacher, then the president of Walt Disney Feature Animation, approached Sanders with the objective of producing "theDumbo for our generation." The use of watercolor backgrounds hearkened back to early Disney productions such asSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937). The film and its accompanying soundtrack made extensive use of the music ofElvis Presley, whileAlan Silvestri composed the film's score.
Lilo & Stitch premiered at theEl Capitan Theatre inLos Angeles on June 16, 2002, and was theatrically released in the United States on June 21. The film received positive reviews from critics, who praised its story, humor, charm, and originality. Produced on an $80 million budget and promoted with a marketing campaign that played up its oddities, it was a box-office success, grossing over $273 million worldwide. It was nominated forBest Animated Feature at the75th Academy Awards, but lost toSpirited Away.[6][7] The film's success made it a highlight of Disney's post-animation renaissance era in the 2000s, spawning afranchise that includes threedirect-to-video film sequels, three television series, and alive-action adaptation that was released in 2025.
Plot
On planet Turo, the United Galactic Federation convicts Dr. Jumba Jookiba of illegal genetic experimentation; he has createdExperiment 626, an aggressive and near-indestructible creature with advanced learning capabilities. Experiment 626 is escorted by Captain Gantu forexile, but 626 escapes and hijacks a space cruiser that crash-lands onKauaʻi,Hawaii, on the planetEarth. Shortly after landing on Earth, 626 is run over by three passing trucks and taken to ananimal shelter. The Federation's Grand Councilwoman offers Jumba an early release if he retrieves 626 with the assistance of the council's Earth expert, Agent Pleakley.
On Kauaʻi, orphaned teenager Nani Pelekai struggles to take care of her lonely, rambunctious younger sister, Lilo, following their parents' death in acar crash. Social worker Cobra Bubbles doubts Nani can be an adequateguardian for Lilo, and threatens to place Lilo infoster care if the Pelekais' situation fails to improve within three days. After overhearing Lilo wishing for a friend, Nani brings her to the animal shelter to adopt a dog. Lilo adopts 626, who is impersonating a dog, and names him "Stitch". Jumba and Pleakley disguise themselves as tourists while trying to capture Stitch. When Stitch attacks Pleakley at thelūʻau where Nani works, Nani is blamed for the incident and fired. Bubbles orders Nani to find a new job and tells Lilo to teach Stitch to be a "model citizen".
Despite Lilo's attempts to domesticate Stitch, his antics repeatedly ruin Nani's efforts to find a new job. While Nani, Lilo, and Stitch gosurfing with Nani's friend and former co-worker David, Jumba and Pleakley again attempt to capture Stitch, who unintentionally drags Lilo under water. David rescues Lilo and Stitch, but Bubbles, having observed the mishap, tells Nani he will retrieve Lilo the following morning. Feeling guilty for causing so much trouble, Stitch runs away. Having failed to capture Stitch, the Grand Councilwoman fires Jumba and Pleakley, and tasks Gantu with capturing Stitch. Now free, Jumba begins hunting Stitch using less-covert methods. When David informs Nani of another job opportunity, Nani leaves Lilo at home alone. Jumba and Pleakley chase Stitch back to the Pelekais' house, and the ensuing fight causes an explosion that destroys the house.
Nani gets the job, but frantically returns home after seeing afire engine driving toward her house. Bubbles arrives to retrieve Lilo. While Bubbles and Nani argue about Lilo's well-being, Lilo runs away into the woods and encounters Stitch, who reveals his alien identity, just moments before Gantu captures them both. Stitch manages to escape just as Gantu's ship takes off. Nani confronts Stitch, but Jumba and Pleakley immediately capture him. Nani asks them to save Lilo, but they insist they only have legal authority to capture Stitch. As Nani breaks down, Stitch remembersʻohana, a term for "family" he learned from Lilo, and convinces Jumba to help rescue her. Jumba, Pleakley, Stitch, and Nani board Jumba's spaceship, pursue Gantu, and rescue Lilo.
The Grand Councilwoman arrives to retrieve Stitch herself, and fires Gantu for endangering Lilo and failing to capture Stitch. After observing Stitch's civilized behavior and being informed that Lilo legally owns Stitch because she bought him at the animal shelter, the Grand Councilwoman decrees that Stitch will live out his exile on Earth and that the Pelekai family is under the protection of the United Galactic Federation. Bubbles reveals he is a formerCIA agent who had previously met the Grand Councilwoman inRoswell, New Mexico, in 1973. Stitch, Jumba, and Pleakley, having joined Lilo and Nani's family, rebuild their house with David and Bubbles' help.
Susan Hegarty as Rescue Lady, who runs the animal shelter where Lilo adopts Stitch.
Production
Development
A 1985concept sketch of Stitch by the character's creator Chris Sanders
In 1985, after graduating fromCalifornia Institute of the Arts,Chris Sanders had created the character of Stitch for an unsuccessful children's book pitch.[8] He said, "I wanted to do a children's book about this little creature that lived in a forest. It was a bit of a monster with no real explanation as to where it came from." He found condensing the story to be difficult, though, and abandoned the project.[9] In 1987,Walt Disney Feature Animation hired him for their newly formed visual development department. His first project wasThe Rescuers Down Under (1990), but he soon transitioned into storyboarding.[10] After that, Sanders created storyboard sequences forBeauty and the Beast (1991) andThe Lion King (1994), and was promoted to head of story onMulan (1998).[11]
In 1997, several executives at Disney Feature Animation were invited to a retreat atMichael Eisner's farm in Vermont to discuss the future animation slate beyond adapting pre-existing legends, folklore, or classic novels.[12] At the retreat,Thomas Schumacher, then executive vice president of Disney Feature Animation, suggested they produce a film that would be the "Dumbo for our generation", compared to the large-budget Disney animated features they had already done.[8] Schumacher approached Sanders about producing the film, telling him: "Everybody wants this next film to be you."[9]
During a karaoke dinner at theWalt Disney World Swan Resort, Schumacher asked Sanders, "Is there anything you would like to develop?" Sanders remembered the children's book project he had initially developed.[13] At his next meeting, Sanders pitched a remote, nonurban location, with Stitch crash-landing into a forest and interacting entirely with woodland animals, being ostracized by them, and living on his own at a farm in ruralKansas.[14] But Schumacher suggested that Stitch should interact with people, instead: "The animal world is already alien to us. So, if you want to get the best contrast between this monster and the place where it lives, I would recommend you set it in a human world."[13][15][16] Sanders eventually, albeit inadvertently, revisited his idea of a creature bonding with animals in a forest years later withDreamWorks Animation'sThe Wild Robot (2024).[17]
For three straight days in hisPalm Springs, Florida, hotel room, Sanders created a 29-page pitch book drawing conceptual sketches and outlining the film's general story.[13] He initially revised it by adding a boy character,[18] but as the character of Stitch evolved, Sanders decided he needed to be contrasted with a female character: "I think Stitch represented a male character, so the balance would be to put him with a little girl. We wanted someone who was going to be in conflict with Stitch, and we realized a little boy might be a comrade."[19] Sanders then glanced at a map of Hawaii on his wall, and recalling he had recently vacationed there, he relocated the story there.[8] Not well versed in Hawaiian culture, Sanders turned to a vacation roadmap, and found the names "Lilo Lane" and "Nani" there.[9] After finishing the booklet, he shipped it to Burbank, and Schumacher approved the pitch with one condition: "it has to look like you drew it."[13]
Writing
Animation has been set so much in ancient, medieval Europe—so manyfairy tales find their roots there, that to place it in Hawaii was kind of a big leap. But that choice went to color the entire movie, and rewrite the story for us.
—Chris Sanders, reflecting on the location change to Hawaii[15]
Dean DeBlois, who had served as "story co-head" forMulan, was brought on to co-write and co-directLilo & Stitch after Thomas Schumacher allowed him to leave production onAtlantis: The Lost Empire (2001).[20] Meanwhile, Disney executive Clark Spencer was assigned as the film's producer. Unlike several previous and concurrent Disney Feature Animation productions, the film's pre-production team remained relatively small and isolated from upper management until the film went into full production.[21]
Originally, Stitch was the leader of an intergalactic gang, and Jumba was one of his former cronies summoned by the Intergalactic Council to capture Stitch.[8] Test audience response to early versions of the film led to changing Stitch and Jumba into creation and creator.[8]
While the animation team visitedKauaʻi to research the locale, their tour guide explained the meaning ofʻohana as it applies toextended families. This concept ofʻohana became an important part of the movie. DeBlois recalls:
No matter where we went, our tour guide seemed to know somebody. He was really the one who explained to us the Hawaiian concept ofʻohana, a sense of family that extends far beyond your immediate relatives. That idea so influenced the story that it became the foundation theme, the thing that causes Stitch to evolve despite what he was created to do, which is destroy.
The island of Kauaʻi had also been featured in such films asRaiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and theJurassic Park trilogy (1993–2001). Disney's animators faced the daunting task of meshing the film's plot, which showed the impoverished and dysfunctional life that many Hawaiians lived during the then-recenteconomic downturn, with the island's serene beauty. The actors voicing the film's young adults, Nani and David, wereTia Carrere, a local ofHonolulu, andJason Scott Lee, who is of Hawaiian descent and grew up in Hawaii. Both Carrere and Lee assisted with rewriting their characters' dialogue in propercolloquial dialect, and with adding Hawaiian slang terms.[22]
One innovative and unique aspect of the film is its strong focus on the relationship between two sisters. At the time, a central relationship between sisters as a major plot element was rare inAmerican animated films.[23]
Casting
Daveigh Chase earned the role of Lilo in the fall of 1998 against 150 other candidates.[24]
Stitch was initially intended to be a nonverbal character, but Sanders said he realized, "he'd have to say a few things, so we made sure that we kept it to a minimum." Instead of hiring a professional actor to voice Stitch, DeBlois suggested Sanders take the role. According to Sanders, Stitch's voice was the one he regularly used "just to bother people at the studio. I'd call people on the phone and do that voice and annoy them."[25]
Tia Carrere was originally considered for thetitle character inMulan (1998), but lost the role toMing-Na Wen.[26] After learning Disney was doing a Hawaii-set film, Carrere sought a voice role and was hired to voice Nani.[26] She spent two years recording her part inLos Angeles,Paris, andToronto.[27] Jason Scott Lee was cast as David after Carrere recommended him for the film.[26]
Chris Williams, then a storyboard artist, suggestedKevin McDonald for the part of Agent Pleakley. After McDonald read for the part, he was cast.[9] Cobra Bubbles was initially envisioned as more of a nebbish, withJeff Goldblum in mind for the role. Goldblum declined the role, and Bubbles was reconceived as a more intimidating character. Sanders and DeBlois recalled Ving Rhames's performance inPulp Fiction (1994) and cast him.[9]
During the film's early development,Ricardo Montalbán was cast as one of the villains, with his vocal performance based on the voice he used forKhan Noonien Singh inStar Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.[9] However, all the lines he recorded were removed and his character was cut after the meeting that lead to the removal of Stitch's gang from the story. Eventually, the villainous role in the film would be Gantu voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson, who is best known for playing villain roles in shows and movies. David Ogden Stiers (who had previously done voices for Disney in past films) was chosen to be the voice of Jumba. Australian actress Zoe Caldwell got the role of voicing the Grand Councilwoman, the leader of the United Galactic Federation.[9]
Design and animation
The original scene (top) and the one used in the release (bottom): TheBoeing 747 and the spaceship are both flying in a sideways position.
In a deviation from several decades' worth of Disney features, Sanders and DeBlois chose to use watercolor-painted backgrounds forLilo & Stitch, as opposed to the traditionalgouache technique.[8] Watercolors had been used for the early Disney animated shorts, as well as the early Disney featuresSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937),Pinocchio (1940), andDumbo (1941), but the technique had been largely abandoned by the mid-1940s in favor of less complicated media such as gouache. Sanders preferred that watercolors be used forLilo & Stitch to evoke both the bright look of a storybook and the art direction ofDumbo, requiring the background artists to be trained in working with the medium.[8][21]
The animation itself was all based on two-dimensional work, since the budget was too small forcomputer-generated imagery.[20] The character designs were based on Sanders's personal drawing style, rather than the traditional Disney in-house style.[8] To assist the animators with adapting Sanders's style,Sue C. Nichols, the film's visual development supervisor, created a manual,Surfing the Sanders Style.[13] Because of the limited budget, details like pockets or designs on clothing were avoided in the animation process, and since they could not afford to do shadows throughout much of the film, many of the scenes took place in shaded areas, saving shadows for more pivotal scenes.[20]
The film's extraterrestrial elements, such as the spaceships, were designed to resemble marine life, such as whales and crabs.[28] One altered scene in the film involved Stitch, Nani, Jumba, and Pleakleyhijacking aBoeing 747 jet fromLihue Airport that scrapes against buildings through downtownHonolulu. After theSeptember 11 attacks, with only a few weeks left in production, the climax was completely reworked to have them use Jumba's spacecraft, instead. The location was also shifted to have them fly through the mountains of Kauaʻi.[29][30] The final design still retains the engines that resembled the 747's jet engines, according to Sanders.[20]
Despite this adjustment, the team had enough budget for about two additional minutes of animation, which was used to create the epilogue montage of Lilo, Nani, and Stitch becoming a new family.[20][31]
Wanting Stitch to be a central part of the film's marketing campaign, Sanders pitched a subversive idea: "what if Stitch invaded other Disney properties?"Dick Cook, then chairman of Walt Disney Studios, loved the idea and allowed for four parody teaser trailers to be made (nicknamed "Inter-stitch-als"), in which Stitch crashes memorable moments of four films from theDisney Renaissance (three of which Sanders had worked on):The Little Mermaid (1989),Beauty and the Beast (1991),Aladdin (1992), andThe Lion King (1994).[25] Most of the original actors reprised their roles in the trailers, but they were confused when asked to act negatively toward Stitch. Sanders explained, "They were all professional and nice, but I don't think any of the actors were happy about what we were doing because they are those characters to a large degree, so this stuff is really important to them."[33] The trailers also include theAC/DC song "Back in Black."
The marketing campaign also included several tie-in promotions, such asLilo & Stitch toys being offered as part ofMcDonald's Happy Meals.[34] In the United Kingdom,Lilo & Stitch trailers and television ads featured a cover of Elvis Presley's song "Suspicious Minds", performed byGareth Gates, who became famous on the UK TV programPop Idol. In the U.S., "Hound Dog" was used for both theatrical and television trailers. The marketing campaign presented Stitch as the sort of "Disney FamilyBlack Sheep". As a promotional campaign, comics ofLilo & Stitch ran inDisney Adventuresbefore the film's release. The comics detailed events leading up to the film for both title characters, including Stitch's creation and escape. These events were later contradicted by the sequelLilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch, rendering the comics noncanonical, but the comics are notable for introducing Experiment 625,Reuben, who was a main character in the subsequent movies and TV series.[citation needed] Most of the comic series have been released as a collective volume,Comic Zone Volume 1: Lilo & Stitch.
Home media
Lilo & Stitch was released onVHS andDVD on December 3, 2002.[35] During the first day of release, more than 3 million DVD copies were sold, earning $45 million in retail sales.[36][37] ThisTHX-certified DVD release features various bonus features, including a "Build An Alien Experiment" game, an audio commentary, music videos, deleted scenes, teaser trailers, and DVD-ROM.[38] In 2003, a 2-disc DVD version was announced to come out along withAlice in Wonderland (1951) andPocahontas (1995), which were released in 2004 and 2005.
A two-disc Special Edition DVD of the film was released inAustralia on November 10, 2004, and theUK on August 22, 2005, along with the UK release ofLilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch (2005), but a release in the US was affected by many delays. On March 24, 2009, Disney finally released the special edition DVD, called the "Big Wave Edition". This DVD edition retained the original supplemental features, along with an audio commentary, a two-hour documentary, more deleted scenes, a number of behind-the-scenes featurettes, and some games.
On June 11, 2013,Lilo & Stitch was released onBlu-ray and re-released on DVD alongsideLilo & Stitch 2 in a "2-Movie Collection", which included a single Blu-ray with both films, but without bonus features, a reprint of disc one of the "Big Wave Edition" DVD, and a reprint of theLilo & Stitch 2 DVD.[39] The "2-Movie Collection" has since seen two re-releases; one on January 31, 2017, containing only the Blu-ray and a code to redeem a digital download of the two films,[40] and another on August 9, 2022, which places both films on separate Blu-ray discs that also contain most of their original DVD bonus features, the two DVDs from the first Blu-ray collection, and a digital download code as with the second Blu-ray collection.[41]
A scene where Nani chases Lilo was modified for the UK release so the film could secure aU (Universal) certificate from theBritish Board of Film Classification.[43] In the original, Lilo hid in a clothes dryer, which was changed to a commode with a cupboard that has a pizza box used as a "door" to avoid influencing children to hide in dryers.[44][45] The UK edit has since become the standardized version of the film across all regions, as it would be used for the film's digital and physical releases onward.[44]
Reception
Box office
Lilo & Stitch opened in second place, earning $35.3 million in its first weekend, ranking narrowly belowSteven Spielberg'sMinority Report.[46] During its second weekend, it fell to third place, behindMinority Report andMr. Deeds.[47] Despite the opening ofMen in Black II the week after,Lilo & Stitch remained in third place.[48]
Meanwhile,Lilo & Stitch continued to draw in families while other major summer blockbusters such asSpider-Man andStar Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones were still in wide release and dominating the box office.[49] Additionally, it went on to compete against theWarner Bros. live-action/animated hybrid film,Scooby-Doo, along withMatt Damon's action film,The Bourne Identity.[49] The film earned $145.8 million in the U.S. and Canada, and $127.3 million internationally, totaling $273.1 million worldwide.[2]
In the UK,Lilo & Stitch collected $2.4 million during its opening weekend, ranking in first place ahead ofSigns andMy Big Fat Greek Wedding.[50] The film would be overtaken byRed Dragon in its second weekend.[51]
At the end of its theatrical run,Lilo & Stitch earned $145.8 million in the U.S. and Canada, and $127.3 million internationally, totaling $273.1 million worldwide.[2] It became the second-highest-grossing animated film of 2002, behind20th Century Fox'sIce Age. They were the only two animated films to approach the $100 million mark that year domestically.[52]Box Office Mojo estimates that the film sold over 25 million tickets during its original run.[2]
Critical reaction
Lilo & Stitch received positive reviews upon release.[53][54][55]Rotten Tomatoes reported that the film has an approval rating of 86% based on 152 reviews, with an average rating of 7.3/10. The site's critics consensus reads, "Edgier than traditional Disney fare,Lilo and Stitch explores issues of family while providing a fun and charming story."[56]Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 73 out of 100, based on 30 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[57] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.[58]
Roger Ebert of theChicago Sun-Times gave the film3+1⁄2 stars out of 4, writing: "It's one of the most charming feature-length cartoons of recent years—funny, sassy, startling, original and with six songs by Elvis. It doesn't get sickeningly sweet at the end, it has as much stuff in it for grown-ups as for kids, and it has a bright offbeat look to it."[59]Kenneth Turan of theLos Angeles Times wrote: "Looser and less obviously formulaic in its fresh approach to our hearts, the brash [film] has an unleashed, subversive sense of humor that's less corporate and more uninhibited than any non-Pixar Disney film has been in time out of mind. With its hand-drawn characters and its use of watercolors for backgrounds (the first time the studio's done that since the 1940s), this is a happy throwback to the time when cartoons were cinema's most idiosyncratic form instead of one of its most predictable."[60]Richard Corliss ofTime magazine felt the film is "a bright, engaging bauble with half a dozen Elvis Presley songs for Mom and Dad, and just enough sass. Stitch sticks his tongue into his nose and eats his snot to keep the tweeners giggling ...after a lag in the early sister scenes, Lilo reveals its own very American verve and wit, along with a smart story sense that marks the best animated features, traditional or computerized."[61]
Claudia Puig ofUSA Today noted the colors "are ultra-vibrant and rich, appropriate to the Hawaiian setting. Best of all, the movie has an endearingly cheeky attitude sometimes missing from more earnest Disney tales. Witty, touching and well-paced,Lilo & Stitch is ideal family fare, but little more."[62]Desson Howe ofThe Washington Post also praised the film's use of watercolors, writing it is "appealing. It's easy, rather than flashy, on the eyes. And there's some sort of relief in that, in this world of hyper-powerful computer-generated imagery."[63]Owen Gleiberman, reviewing forEntertainment Weekly, argued the "animation inLilo & Stitch has an engaging retro-simple vivacity, and it's nice to see a movie for tots make use of Elvis Presley, but the story is witless and oddly defanged. Stitch gets discovered by Lilo, a temperamental Hawaiian girl who's the whiniest of whiny brats. These two become friends in theory only: There's so little connection between them that just about the only thing sustaining the movie is its vagueE.T. outline."[64]
Todd McCarthy ofVariety felt Sanders and DeBlois "keep things moving briskly while commendably avoiding any special sentimental 'We Are a Village' point-making, despite the obvious opportunity. Character designs are familiar enough, but backgrounds possess an unusual pastel quality that gives the film an inviting atmosphere all its own."[65] In contrast,Mick LaSalle of theSan Francisco Gate feltLilo & Stitch was more appropriate for a television series, writing the directors "find themselves locked into the structure of a feature film. They're forced to tell the story of Lilo and Stitch's relationship, to give it shape and a sense of arrival. Since this is a kid's movie, the relationship can only head in the direction of schmaltz. So the promising anarchy of the first 10 or 15 minutes is suppressed."[66]
In 2025, it was one of the films voted for the "Readers' Choice" edition ofThe New York Times' list of "The 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century," finishing at number 294.[68]
The soundtrack contains two original songs from the film written byMark Kealiʻi Hoʻomalu andAlan Silvestri (the film's composer), and performed by Hoʻomalu and theKamehameha Schools Children's Chorus. It also contains five songs by American singer Elvis Presley, and two of his songs re-recorded by contemporary artists. These songs were performed by American singerWynonna ("Burning Love") and Swedish groupA-Teens ("Can't Help Falling in Love").
"Baby You Belong" byFaith Hill was used as the theme song in the Japanese version. In North America, the song was simply an album track with no connotation to the film.[71]
On August 26, 2003, Disney released a direct-to-video sequel,Stitch! The Movie, which served as the pilot to a television series titledLilo & Stitch: The Series. This series ran for 65 episodes between September 20, 2003, and July 29, 2006. The series carried on where the film left off and charted Lilo and Stitch's efforts to capture and rehabilitateJumba's remaining experiments. The series, as well as the original parts of the franchise that focused on Lilo Pelekai and were set in Hawaii, ended with the television filmLeroy & Stitch, which aired on June 23, 2006.
On August 30, 2005,Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch, another direct-to-video sequel to the film, was released. In this film (set betweenLilo & Stitch andStitch! The Movie), Stitch has a glitch because his molecules were never fully charged (this is contrary to an original opening, "Stitch's Trial", which was seen on the DVD release ofLilo & Stitch). Lilo wants to win the May Day hula contest like her mother did in the 1970s, but Stitch continues to have outbursts. Lilo gets increasingly mad at Stitch as his glitch causes more problems for her and ruins her chances of winning the competition. She thinks Stitch is not cooperating properly, until she finds out that Stitch is dying. TheLilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has a Glitch DVD also contained a short film,The Origin of Stitch, that served as a bridge betweenStitch Has a Glitch andStitch! The Movie.
In March 2008, Disney announced ananime based on theLilo & Stitch franchise aimed at the Japanese market titledStitch!. The anime, which ran as a series from October 2008 to March 2011, features a Japanese girl named Yuna Kamihara in place of Lilo, and is set on a fictional island inOkinawa Prefecture instead of Hawaii. This series was produced byMadhouse for its first two seasons, andShin-Ei Animation for its third season and two post-series specials in 2012 and 2015.
From March 27 to April 6, 2017, an English-language Chinese animated television series based on the franchise titledStitch & Ai aired in China with a Mandarin Chinese dub. It was produced by Anhui Xinhua Media and Panimation Hwakai Media. Like with theStitch! anime, it features a local girl named Wang Ai Ling instead of Lilo, and is set in theHuangshan Mountains. UnlikeStitch!, however, this series was originally produced in English in co-operation with American animators (including those who worked onLilo & Stitch: The Series) and then dubbed into Mandarin Chinese; the original English production aired in Southeast Asia during February 2018.
A live-action remake ofLilo & Stitch was released by Disney on May 23, 2025,[72][73] produced byAladdin producersDan Lin and Jonathan Eirich, written by Mike Van Waes and directed byDean Fleischer Camp.[74][75] The remake stars Chris Sanders reprising his role as the voice of Stitch,[76]Maia Kealoha as Lilo,[77] Sydney Agudong as Nani,[4] Kaipo Dudoit as David,[78]Courtney B. Vance as Bubbles,[79]Zach Galifianakis as Jumba[80][81] andBilly Magnussen as Pleakley,[82] whileTia Carrere, the original voice actress of Nani, was announced to play Mrs. Kekoa andAmy Hill, who voiced Mrs. Hasagawa in the original, portray a new character named Tūtū.[83] The character of Gantu was cut from the film due to budgetary constraints.[84]
^Stewart, James B. (2005).DisneyWar. Simon and Schuster. pp. 472–473.ISBN9780743283908.Weeks later, on January 12, Disney announced that it was shutting down its Orlando animation unit, whereLilo & Stitch had been created.
^"The 75th Academy Awards | 2003".Oscars.org | Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. October 5, 2014.Archived from the original on April 17, 2018. RetrievedJune 21, 2021.
^"BBFC Annual Report 2002"(PDF).British Board of Film Classification. 2002. RetrievedApril 29, 2025.The dangers of children climbing into kitchen electrical equipment, typically fridges and laundry machines, are self-evident to all but the very young. Any children's film that presents this scenario is likely to be a candidate for cuts. The animated featureLilo & Stitch contained a scene where the heroine, being chased by her sister, clambers into a tumble-drier to hide. No mention is made of the dangers of this act when she is discovered, and the board requested a cut to remove the unacceptable footage for 'U'. The Disney company, once alerted to the dangers that the scene presented for the young, chose to reshoot so that audiences now see Lilo hiding in a harmless cupboard. The newly created safe version of the incident was incorporated into all prints of the finished work, and the potential harm was averted.
^Gleiberman, Owen (June 28, 2002)."Film Review: 'Lilo & Stitch'".Entertainment Weekly.Archived from the original on December 4, 2022. RetrievedMarch 22, 2023.
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