After nearly two months in theaters, Disney’s remake of “Lilo & Stitch” has passed $1 billion at the global box office, becoming the studio’s 30th theatrical release to cross that milestone and fourth in the last 13 months.
It is the second movie this year and the first from Hollywood to cross the $1 billion threshold, joining the $2 billion-plus Chinese animated hit “Ne Zha 2.” It is also the fifth Disney remake to pass the milestone, joining remakes of “Alice in Wonderland,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “The Lion King” and “Aladdin.”
“We knew there was a lot of love for ‘Lilo & Stitch’ with audiences around the world, yet we never take that for granted, and we’re proud of how this new film has connected with people,” said Disney co-chairman Alan Bergman. “I’m thankful to our filmmakers, our cast, and all on our Studio team who have made this film such a success, and we look forward to more adventures with these characters ahead.”
While some slammed the film on social media for changes made to the narrative of the 2002 animated film, Dean Fleischer-Camp’s remake was well received by family and general audiences, earning an A on CinemaScore and Rotten Tomatoes scores of 71% critics and 92% audience and legging out for weeks even against competition like Universal’s own remake of “How to Train Your Dragon.”
Following the box office flop of the remake of “Snow White,” “Lilo & Stitch” played off of nostalgia that millennials have for the original film, along with the fact that many of those who saw that movie 23 years ago as kids now have kids of their own.
The global appeal of Stitch as a character also proved to be a border-crossing box office draw in a way that the nearly century-old “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” despite its status as a landmark achievement in cinema, couldn’t match in today’s pop culture.
“Lilo & Stitch” has proven to be one of a few precious bright spots for Disney in a largely poor first half of the year at the box office. 2025 kicked off with a rebound run for its “Lion King” prequel “Mufasa” ($722 million worldwide) after a slow pre-Christmas opening, but that was followed by the aforementioned “Snow White” misfire ($205 million worldwide) as well as disappointing returns for the Marvel movies “Captain America: Brave New World” ($413 million) and “Thunderbolts*” ($382 million).
The release of “Lilo & Stitch” was then followed by the bombing of the Pixar film “Elio,” which through this past Sunday grossed just $117 million worldwide against a production budget that ballooned past its initial $150 million cost.
The second half of the year should be better for Disney, starting next weekend with Marvel’s “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” which is projected for a $125 million opening weekend. Disney is also expected to be a top player in the last quarter of the year with films like James Cameron’s “Avatar: Fire and Ash,” the animated “Zootopia 2,” and the Bruce Springsteen biopic “Deliver Me From Nowhere.”
