Lilo & Stitch director explains why he changed film's ending following backlash

9 June 2025, 12:59

By Sam Prance

"We wanted to expand the meaning of ohana."

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Lilo & Stitch director Dean Fleischer Camp has addressed the backlash surrounding the live-action film's new ending.

Disney's live-action Lilo & Stitch has been hailed as one of the company's best remakes yet. However, it's also faced some backlash over changes from the original. For example, Pleakley doesn't wear drag in the film, Gantu has been removed from the film entirely and Jumba has been turned into the movie's main villain.

Most controversially, the film has a different ending to the original. Instead of Nani staying in Hawaii to raise Lilo, she goes to San Diego to study marine bilogy and Lilo & Nani's neighbours Tūtū and David take guardianship over Lilo.

Some fans accused the film of missing the message of the original but now Dean has defended the new ending.

Read more: Lilo & Stitch criticised for changing Nani's "Ohana means family" scene
Read more: Every original Lilo & Stitch actor who returns in the live-action film cast

Watch the live-action Lilo & Stitch trailer

Speaking to Variety, Dean said: “I’ve had some time to think about this. I do think that a fair amount of the people who are dunking on that premise have not actually seen the movie, and they write me stuff that is clearly wrong. But when you see [it], it doesn’t feel that way at all, and you see the intent of the actual filmmaking.”

Explaining why they changed the ending, Dean added: “We wanted to expand the meaning of ohana [a Hawaiian word for family / community], and ground it in traditional Hawaiian values of collectivism, extended family and community.”

The change came from the original film's co-creator: "Chris [Sanders, a co-creator of the original and collaborator on the new one], who’s Hawaiian, made a really important observation about the original early on in our discussions. He didn’t buy that the two orphan sisters would just be left to fend for themselves."

Dean continued: "He said, ‘Neighbours, church groups, aunties and uncles, all these people would step in. That’s just the Hawaii I know and grew up in.'"

Maia Kealoha and Sydney Agudong in Lilo & Stitch. Picture: Alamy

Dean then revealed that Chris personally came up with Tutu: “That led Chris to create this character of Tutu, and she ultimately takes Lilo in as hanai, which is this culturally specific term and tradition that is a form of informal adoption. It isn’t about blood or paperwork, but love and responsibility for the greater good and for one’s community."

He continued: "A lot of Hawaiians who’ve seen the film have picked up on that reference to hanai, and they love that. It’s this uniquely Hawaiian answer to the question of who shows up when things fall apart, and that idea of informal adoption. It shows the community’s willingness to sacrifice and do whatever it takes for these girls."

Nevertheless, Dean said that he understands why people feel strongly: “I think you can’t satisfy everyone with these remakes. You're treading on hallowed ground when you make one of these because these are films people grew up with, and I’m one of them, and I totally understand it."

Dean ended by saying: "We didn’t want to just restage the beats of the original film. We wanted to tell a story that’s honest about what it means to lose everything and still find a way forward."

What did you think of the ending change?