Disney executive shares a promidate on Lilo & Stitch's future following the 2025 live-action movie. The remake of Disney's 2002 animated movie of the same name stars Maia Kealoha as Lilo Pelekai. Coming to theaters on May 23, the movie sees the original director and writer, Chris Sanders, reprising his voice role as Stitch. Ahead of its release, the Lilo & Stitch movie has already gained positive first reviews.

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Disney Entertainment co-chairman Alan Bergman offered a positive update on the movie's sequel potential. The executive shared that the company was very confident about the movie's performance and was already thinking ahead about what could come next. Check out his comment below:

It feels like it’s going to work very well, and it’s the kind of property that lends itself to more.

What This Means For Lilo & Stitch

Disney Is Prepared For Lilo & Stitch's Success

The original animated movie had a modest theatrical run in 2002, but since its arrival on Disney+, it has gained significant traction. According to the same article, the movie has 546 million hours of its total viewing time. The franchise's retail sales grew $2.6 billion last year from where it was five years ago, making Lilo & Stitch one of Disney's top 10 bestselling franchises, which took a big part in the company's decision to add a live-action remake to its slate.

Originally planned as a family-friendly Memorial Day weekend alternative to Tom Cruise's blockbuster Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning, the movie's box office estimation has shown the potential to sur its competitor at the opening weekend box office. Lilo & Stitch is projected to earn more than $150 million in North America against its $100 production budget, while the box office projection for The Final Reckoning is around $80 million. The remake has an estimated budget of $100 million, which means it will easily become a box-office success in just its first week.

Our Take On Lilo & Stitch's Future

Lilo & Stitch Has Serious Sequel Potential

Disney has stocked up its retail stores with new lines of merchandise to prepare for Lilo & Stitch's release. Frozen 2 opened to $127 million at the domestic box office after a $100 million to $140 million projection. This means that the new Disney remake might be an even bigger success than the Frozen sequel, so it makes sense why the company is already thinking ahead of time.

The 2025 live-action remake has a high potential to become one of the most successful animated franchises, and given the fact that Disney has been making decisions regarding the franchise from a financial perspective, it's very likely that the film will receive follow-up sequels. Lilo & Stitch has also received positive reviews from critics. Despite having made some big changes from the source material, the movie's current Rotten Tomatoes score sits at 74% from 72 reviews.

Source: WSJ