Lilo & Stitch

Disney’s live-action Lilo & Stitch lands like a tropical breeze just as the studio reels from the disastrous Snow White remake. With Snow White grossing a mere $205 million globally, half of the $410 million spent, and marred by controversies (casting backlash around Rachel Zegler, Gal Gadot’s acting, and Peter Dinklage’s dwarfism critique), the film has set itself apart as one of Disney’s biggest cinematic blunders in the past decade.

By contrast, Lilo & Stitch has been a triumph. Debuting to an impressive $183 million during Memorial Day weekend and almost $859 million worldwide as of mid June, it’s become the third-highest-grossing film of 2025. This success isn’t just about numbers: it speaks to smart adaptation. Based on early 2000s nostalgia, it connects emotionally with millennials now bringing their own kids, unlike Snow White, a remnant of 1937 with far less generational pull than the more familiar Lilo & Stitch.

Critically, Lilo & Stitch has received mixed reviews, but audience responses have been overwhelmingly positive: CinemaScore gave it an A, and PostTrak rated it 90% favorable. It leans into heart, humor, and cultural vibrancy, staying faithful to its Hawaiian roots while offering new elements: richer character arcs, updated music, and contemporary design.

In comparison, Snow White was burdened by clunky CGI dwarfs, tonal inconsistency, and bad plot adjustments that alienated both critics and fans.

For Disney, Lilo & Stitch does restore some hope. It shows that Disney is not entirely incapable of good live-action adaptations, as many of the past ones would have you believe. Disney merely needs to get its head in the game and put more time, effort, and resources into these projects, or they will be destined for disaster and critically panned, as Snow White so generously demonstrated for us.