I have never seen a live action Disney remake.
As a huge fan of animation, the very premise of them annoys me. I do understand the argument of updating some of the older animated films, as the content is dated and some of the more racist or sexist things didn't age well. However, I do think there is value from learning from history. For example, Peter Pan is incredibly racist when it comes to its portrayal of indigenous people, but it's a look at what not to do and how we've evolved in media since then. And with updated versions of older films like Cinderella, I do understand the thinking behind a more modern take since many of the fairy tales can usually be reworked into current settings.
However, updating the recent movies makes me angry. No, Lion King. You were not "live action." You were an animated film with an ugly brown filter on everything when Africa is one of the most lush and gorgeous continents on our planet. One watch of that trailer and I went, "Yeah, this looks horrible." It pisses me off these movie do well too and these will be children's first exposure to these classic stories. The fact that other studios are following this format enrages me. How To Train Your Dragon is a perfect movie and trilogy, DreamWorks. Do not touch it!
I was already salty at the announcement of the live action Lilo and Stitch. The movie isn't that old. It's a beloved classic. It felt like a grubby cash grab. Well respected animators have been sounding off at how grubby this is against their field.
I feel like gamers are to blame with their relentless culture of remaking their favorite games with "better graphics" that in their minds completely supersede the originals
— Matt Braly (@Radrappy) March 12, 2025
Between my moral feelings about the "live action" remakes, animators I respect sounding off, as well as ongoing issues with colorism, I wasn't eager to sit and actually watch the full trailer. So a day later, I finally decided to watch it.
God, I hate that I liked it.
100% of me liking it goes to the adorable performance of Maia Kealoha as Lilo, because it sure as hell isn't for the animation. Like props to bringing back Chris Sanders to reprise his role, but I totally agree with Hazbin Hotel creator Vivienne Medrano that a lot of the animation just looks rough. 3D often struggles to recreate the life of 2D animation, and it really shows in this trailer. Granted, as a trailer, they will have time to overwork their animators up until the movie is released to improve it so no worries! People will be underpaid to get this looking decent for the theater.
I miss the watercolor backgrounds that made the animated film so charming.
Maia is the star, and she's the one that sells this movie to me. Stitch clearly had a ton of work put into him, and it shows as there are some really good shots of him. However, they only work because of Maia, who is already smashing her breakout role. If I do actually watch this film, it's going to be for her and her performance. No, I will not be spending money to see it in theaters.
However, I am at least interested enough to maybe watch it when it comes to Disney+. I love Lilo and Stitch, so this could possibly be the first Disney "live action" remake I might actually watch.