Movie Releases. "Lilo & Stitch": How the Little Blue Alien Became Disney's New Mascot
Coming to theaters this Wednesday in Lilo & Stitch , the alien Stitch has become a very popular mascot for Disney in just a few years. We'll explain why.
The film Lilo & Stitch arrives in theaters this Wednesday, May 21. Photo Disney
Led by its blue, furry hero, the Lilo & Stitch wave hits movie theaters this Wednesday, May 21, in the form of a remake of the Disney animated film released in 2002.
Two months after a controversial version of Snow White , this new recycling of a Disney classic, initially planned for the studio's streaming platform, is highly anticipated. According to the group, the trailer unveiled in March generated 158 million views in 24 hours, a score beaten only by the teaser of The Lion King , a success in 2019, among its live-action productions.
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In the United States, where the feature film hits theaters on Friday, two days after France, the specialist site Deadline expects it to dominate the box office during its first weekend of release by generating $120 million, ahead of the last installment of the Mission: Impossible saga - The Final Reckoning (80 million).
But how did Stitch become so popular in two decades? Stitch is neither a Prince Charming nor a princess, and he's a departure from traditional Disney mascots. "He's an anti-hero, he's not clean, he sticks his tongue up his nose... But when you see this mischievous creature with big ears, both the older and newer generations fall in love," summarizes actor Emmanuel Garijo, the French voice of Stitch, in 2025 as in 2002.
Between 2002 and 2025, Stitch remains as wild as ever. Disney photo
And it's this difference within the Disney universe (like Deadpool can be at Marvel ) that makes it so attractive. Plush toys, construction games, figurines... In France, in the first quarter of 2025, the license, third "behind Pokémon and Star Wars", thus recorded a growth of 125% over one year, according to Frédérique Tutt, of the analysis firm Circana.
Stitch's popularity, first brought back to the forefront by fashion brands, then spread to the toy market in 2023, the expert says. These consumers include "kidults" —teenagers and young adults "who allow themselves to play" when "before it was perhaps frowned upon"—those nostalgic for the first cartoon, its sequels, or the spin-off series, or even children discovering the animal.
Even before the film's release, Stitch had many toys in his image. Photo Sipa / Romuald Meigneux
"We're dealing with pop culture, an endearing and unifying character who can speak to quite different audiences," particularly those aged 15 to 34, says Ali Sana, director of licensing at Disney France, citing a society influenced "by social networks where Stitch's quirky side appeals." The license "will certainly continue to gain market share until the end of the year," predicts Frédérique Tutt. And this will be the case whether the film succeeds or not.
What we thought of the film
In 2023, the film industry had fun with the "Barbenheimer" duel , when two radically different big-budget films were released on the same day: Barbie and Oppenheimer , both of which were hugely successful. Two years later, the same phenomenon is repeated, without creating the same media hype. And yet, between Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning and Lilo & Stitch , it's a real clash of the titans that awaits the dark rooms. And in the box office game, it's not impossible that Tom Cruise will be beaten by smaller films.
Because Lilo (Maia Kealoha) is a six-year-old girl who has been a bit lonely since the death of her parents and lives with her older sister Nani (Sydney Elizabeth Agudong) on a small island in the Hawaiian archipelago. As for Stitch, he's a funny, blue, hairy alien fleeing a dire verdict from his alien companions. He's above all a little monster who has become a Disney superstar since his release in the Lilo & Stitch cartoon in 2001. Mickey's studio is thus continuing its policy of adapting its animated films into live-action films, and this time with much less media controversy than its Snow White from March.
Between animation and live actionA lack of pressure that is felt in the film. It thus remains in the footsteps of the cartoon, offering a mainstream comedy about accepting grief and rebuilding a family. If the words are classic, the whole thing is of a welcome sweetness. The filmmaker Dean Fleischer Camp, discovered with the poetic Marcel the Shell (with his shoes) , succeeds in bringing to life the frustrations and small gestures of love that can exist within a family, well helped by the young actresses, both of whom are touchingly natural. As for Stitch, the friendly monster has been recreated rather convincingly in three dimensions, rarely clashing with the human actors to such an extent that we can speak of a hybrid film between animation and live action.
The success of Minecraft: The Movie is a reminder that there's a growing appetite for family-friendly feature films. In this category, Lilo & Stitch : 2025 is a truly honorable representative.
Lilo & Stitch , in theaters this Wednesday, May 21. Duration: 1 hour 48 minutes.
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