Around noon, Nov. 25th, Disney just released a brand new trailer for Lilo & Stitch 2025. We get a glimpse of Hawaii’s shore and a new demo of Stitch’s CGI animation.
Stitch’s August Announcement Teaser
Back on August 10th, Stitch’s live-action was revealed during D23. The blue alien tears through the title with his iconic sinister laughter. Excited to scheme some trouble, he held his paws together and greeted the audience with his return. He exits off-stage revealing he will return on the big screen in 2025.
During that time, classic animated movie fans felt conflicted about the live-action’s potential. However, probably the nicest thing to say during this time is Stitch’s bouncy and animal-like movements have translated well in CGI. Even his fur deserves compliments for its high texture render. The voice remained the same as Stitch’s co-writer, Chris Sanders voiced him in the original motion picture.
Stitch’s November Teaser Trailer
In Stitch’s November teaser, viewers are given the view of bright blue Hawaii ocean water. There is a view of Kokaua’s beach shore and showcasing one of the volcanoes in the background. They are then transitioned to a sand-built Disney Castle. Seconds later, Stitch crushes it and goes on a pretend rampage to destroy its city. In the end, the trailer reveals Lilo & Stitch 2025 will premiere on Memorial Day 2025 (May 26th).
Disney’s new trailer also shows viewers how Stitch’s animations are currently going under finalization. Compared to the August teaser, it’s clear that the animators want the extraterrestrial to feel equally lively to his original cartoon self. From his facial expressions to his chaotic personality, his energy remained the same thanks to Sander’s voice. He appears more indigo-blue compared to the teaser model. It was unsure if the lighting made the fuzzy alien look grey or that Disney CGI animators accidentally got his fur color wrong.
Signs of a Hopeful Recreation
From what Disney has shown us, there’s a chance Lilo & Stitch 2025 will probably be one of their best live-action recreations. Unlike Lion King and Dumbo’s 2019, Stitch is not based off of an animal in the real world. He has fewer restrictions when it comes to using his cartoonish behavior.
The animals in Lion King and Dumbo could not embody their previous animated counterpart as their anatomy and behavior act differently. You cannot tell which emotion they are expressing unless the voice actor expresses it. Dumbo couldn’t have a voice and was restricted to his realistic elephant ears to communicate.
It’s the opposite for Stitch for he is a 4-armed alien from outer space. Not to mention he was made for the sole purpose of destroying and conquering planets under Dr. Jumba’s orders. With the performance of Chris Sanders, it’s safe to assume he is also watching the live-action project carefully in his most beloved Disney character.
Casting Critics May Kill The Film
While it’s great to see Disney keeping the spirit of Stitch alive, it’s the rest of the cast that I am worried about. Their previous live-action film, The Little Mermaid 2023 was met with mixed criticism. One of the major aspects it suffered from was Ariel’s actor, Halle Bailey. Fans of the original believed Disney did not choose Bailey for her acting and singing ability, but instead her race. The other half supported Disney for trying to be more inclusive including Ariel’s voice actress, Jodi Benson. She saw it as the film’s way to show how far Hollywood has changed.
On June 23rd, part of the Lilo & Stitch 2025 cast was revealed. The actress for Lilo’s older sister and guardian, Nani, will be played by Sydney Adugong. The internet was upset that the actress did not match her skin tone despite being a Hawaii native. Fans on Twitter (now X) argued that Lilo and Nani’s skin color showed their are dark-colored Hawaiians. Adugong may be able to change Disney fans’ minds through her acting performance.
