Disney’s latest live-action offering, Lilo & Stitch, is proving to be a major success, both in the US and worldwide, with early box office estimates indicating a five-day worldwide opening of over $250 million. The film, which premiered on May 23, 2025, has quickly become one of the most buzzed-about theatrical releases of the year.
In just the film’s first day alone, the movie made a robust $55 million in North America alone. As the extended Memorial Day weekend rolls on, industry analysts are expecting total worldwide grosses to fall between $270 million and $310 million, but ultimately settle around $250 million when the five days are concluded. For Disney, it’s not just another successful release; it’s a clear indication that viewers are embracing live-action remakes in a big way again.
A Strong Debut for a Fan Favorite
Aloha! An incredible story gets an exciting new adaptation. Lilo & Stitch says a story about a lonely Hawaiian girl who becomes friends with Stitch, whose background as a chaotic alien experiment means he has a little chaotic, and a lot of soft. The original animated Lilo & Stitch movie was released in 2002 and quickly became a favorite; audiences didn’t care that it came filled with emotions and humor, but also had meaningful messages about family and acceptance. Its easier to go alien when it is fried with a wide range of visual castings, better updated visual storytelling, new human characters, and a more modern interpretation of its existing emotional geology, the 2025 live action movie never loses what made the original story work.
Audiences in numerous countries around the world seemed to embrace the film, since these facets were attractive to families and fans of the original film alike. The timing of Disney’s release on Memorial Day, coincidentally seemed to unlock and use the audience benefit gear so the film was set up to confront the Memorial Day audience, and it made for an overall weekend North American box office of more than $325 million breaking the Memorial Day weekend box office altogether.
Global Performance Exceeds Expectations
At an international level, Lilo & Stitch appears to be showing similar success. The film’s overseas box office numbers being reported are expected to be $130 million to $150 million which will help take the film above $300 million worldwide in total earnings in just a matter of days. This performance will place this film among Disney’s most successful live-action remakes, succeeding various hits such as The Lion King (2019) and Beauty and the Beast (2017).
With family, belonging, and acceptance being universally relatable topics, Lilo & Stitch has clearly transcended cultures making it more than just a loving, nostalgic movie, but rather a worldwide phenomenon.
Audience response vs. Critical reception,
while critics gave the film a fair score of 68% on Rotten Tomatoes, audiences were more inclined to receive the film positively. Audiences rated the film 94%, portraying the movie’s emotional narratives, visual design, and charming rapport between Lilo and Stitch when rendered using CGI.
Fans included that while the film may not wholly replicate the quirky originality present in the 2002 version, it still delivers enough heart and visual grandeur to satisfy all viewers, both new and returning. The CGI-generated Stitch presents more of an expressive and charismatic Stitch, and the Hawaiian locale featured an impressive showcase of cinematography.
Lilo & Stitch might mark a win for Disney’s live-action strategy
Even after sometimes mixed critical responses to some earlier remakes, especially The Little Mermaid, success for Disney seems to be here. If Lilo & Stitch continues to galvanize audiences, it might signal a return to character pieces rather than a continued reliance purely on princess-based franchises. Moana and Tangled eventually finding their way on the screen could certainly use Lilo & Stitch’s positive momentum.
The film’s success is welcomed at a critical time for theatres, strategically recovering from pandemic-related audience drop off. Finding such a huge opening gross, Lilo & Stitch is supporting the restoring of theatrical confidence, and reminding viewers of the a magic that is only present when they collectively experience a shared event.
Moving Forward
Assuming the upcoming trends continue, we expect Lilo & Stitch will cross the $500 million mark in the upcoming weeks. It has strong word-of-mouth backing, substantial repeat viewership, and box-office broad demographic appeal, and we expect Lilo & Stitch will be a box office contender throughout the summer.
More than its box office performance, Lilo & Stitch is striking a deeper emotional chord with audiences. The film’s message that “Ohana means family—and family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten” is clearly resonating, even now more than twenty years since the original film first introduced us to that little blue alien.
Stay tuned to Club4Celebs for more updates.
