Changed ‘Lilo & Stitch’ Ending Sparks Furious Debate Among Fans

*Spoiler Alert: This article contains spoilers for Disney’s new ‘Lilo & Stitch’ live-action remake*

It’s been seven long years since Disney first announced that it was remaking the 2002 animated film Lilo & Stitch. Over the years, Disney’s heavy reliance on live-action remakes has caused a bit of controversy. Remakes like Cinderella (2015) and The Jungle Book (2016) have been very well-received by audiences, but films like Pinocchio (2022), Snow White (2025), Dumbo (2019), and even The Lion King (2019) have not been as loved.

A live-action remake is always a risk, as changes to the original story have to be made, and some fans are sure to be disappointed. Lilo & Stitch has been no exception, despite how much fans seem to love it.

Related: ‘Lilo & Stitch’ Breaks Disney’s Box Office Slump, Makes History!

There are several big changes that have been made to the live-action remake, including Pleakley’s alien form trying to dress like a woman and blend in, and the cutting of the animated film’s primary villain, Captain Gantu.

Now that the film is in theaters nationwide, the biggest debate isn’t about Captain Gantu or Pleakley but how the film ends. Critics say the new ending disrespects the film’s entire message — “‘Ohana means family, and family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten,” for example — while others say the remake fully honors that belief.

In the original animated film, Nani constantly worries that her little sister, Lilo, will be taken away from her as the two struggle to adjust to a new life after their parents’ deaths. Thankfully, Nani can keep custody of Lilo, and the two create their own little family, full of aliens and an intimidating social worker.

Related: ‘Lilo & Stitch’ Director Explains Why Significant Character Was Removed

In the live-action remake, Nani is given more of a backstory, and it is revealed that she has received a full-ride scholarship to the University of California San Diego, but she decided not to go because she needed to take care of Lilo. By the end of the film, Nani still does not want to leave, but Lilo encourages her to go after her dream. Lilo and their neighbor Tūtū tell Nani that she has spent so long taking care of Lilo that she forgot to take care of herself.

Nani decides that she will give custody of Lilo to Tūtū, and she will go to UCSD and get her degree in Marine Biology. And thanks to a great piece of alien technology, Nani can come back and visit Lilo anytime she wants without having to jump on a plane.

This is where the debate pops off. On the one side, you have people upset because the entire film was about Nani fighting for Lilo and their ‘ohana. On the other hand, you have those who point out that Lilo is doing what is best for her ‘ohana, and that means letting Nani pursue her dreams.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, author Mariah Rigg, said that the live-action film’s ending goes against what the original film portrayed.

“The original movie was so much about being against the carceral system in terms of foster care, Stitch’s imprisonment and the colonial system as a whole in Hawaii. I was fully surprised at the remake’s ending, in terms of Nani leaving the state altogether, because I feel like that really contributes to the narrative of displacement of Hawaiians from their ancestral lands. Obviously, there is all this discourse on how ‘ohana means family’ is not really represented in that ending, but in an even larger way, it’s harmful on how it contributes to that narrative of the displacement of Hawaiians from Hawaiian lands.”

It is interesting to note that the University of California, San Diego, and its Scripps Institution of Oceanography are considered one of the top Marine Biology programs in the US. It could also be pointed out that Nani was not being displaced from Hawaii; she was encouraged to leave for the mainland so she could pursue her goal and then return to the island.

Related: ‘Lilo & Stitch’ May Replace ‘Avengers: Endgame’ as Disney’s Most Successful Movie Ever

Forbes writer Laura Sirikul is of the exact opposite opinion — she believes that the film’s new ending pays homage to the concept of ‘ohana.

The ending is actually paying a service to the phrase, as Nani herself doesn’t get left behind in her life and her dreams. Nani is a person, and those aspirations shouldn’t be forgotten or abandoned. Before Lilo became her responsibility, Nani had dreams of studying Marine Biology at the University of California, San Diego (which she got into with a full ride before her parents died). She used to surf with friends, and her potential boyfriend, David (Kaipo Dudoit). She gave it all up to be her sister’s keeper. People often forget about the caretakers and the burnout that they suffer, as well as the sacrifices they make.

The film also makes it a point that Nani never made Lilo feel small about it either. She never resented Lilo, or purposely made Lilo feel like a burden. They would scream at each other like siblings do, but make up in the end, with Nani telling Lilo that she loves her. Nani was an excellent sister, and doing the best she could as an unexpected mother. Nani isn’t the villain in this story, and shouldn’t be made to be one because she is given a chance to live her dream.

As for the live-action film’s director, Dean Fleischer Camp? He is all for the new ending, and has said that the new ending seems more realistic. Nani’s financial situation has not changed, so the odds are that the state would not have any choice but to remove Lilo from her custody. He also said that those who resonated most with the revised ending were people who experienced similar situations (minus the aliens, of course).

Disney’s Lilo & Stitch is currently in theaters nationwide. The film sits at a 93% audience rating from fans and has already made over half a billion at the box office.

Do you like the new ending in Lilo & Stitch, or do you think Disney should have stuck closer to the original story? Do you love the remake as much as the original? Was the new story as heartwarming? Share your thoughts with us in the comments!