How Disney Turned 'Lilo & Stitch' Into Memorial Day Weekend Record Hit: Box Office
It was clear that Disney had a hit on its hands back at CinemaCon, when a sizzle reel showed Stitch popping up in several Mouse House movies. That was further accentuated by recently named Global Distribution Boss Andrew Cripps taking the stage at Caesar’s Las Vegas Colosseum in a Stitch jacket alongside IP mastermind, Disney Entertainment Co-Chairman Alan Bergman.
Yes, Disney did have a plan that it’d make less live-action features based on classic animated titles. However, sometimes the company can’t help itself, and that’s for the better. Because when you’re sitting on a brand that rakes in billions annually in global retail, go for it. Last year alone, Lilo & Stitch consumer products generated an estimated $2.5 billion-plus, according to sources, and was one of 11 evergreen franchises for The Walt Disney Company that surpassed $1 billion-plus in retail sales in 2024.
All of this just underscores the power of a Disney animated movie 23 years after its release — even when the grosses were all right, not super-duper on the 2002 animated movie. While Lilo & Stitch beat Tom Cruise this weekend with a $183M 4-day vs. Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning‘s $77M, back in 2002 it was a different story, as the child and alien took second place to the blockbuster star’s sci-fi movie Minority Report, $35.6M to $35.2M. Lilo & Stitch legged out to $145.7M domestic and $273.1M global off a then-$80M budget, which was all right at the summer box office at the time, but no Toy Story 2, which grossed $245.7M and a near half billion worldwide.
Further cementing the popularity of Lilo & Stitch and the need for a live-action feature film were the Disney+ metrics. The entire Lilo & Stitch catalog has grown significantly each year on the OTT service and that’s based on hours streamed. The Lilo & Stitch franchise has driven over a half billion (546M) hours on Disney+ around the globe with the original movie clocking north of 280M hours viewed.
Greenlight a live action feature? Hell, yes.
Again, just more evidence that theatrical isn’t necessarily the entire story, but the flame that ignites it all. The media may have raked the live-action Rachel Zegler Snow White over the coals this past spring ($87.2M domestic, $205.1M), but let’s sit down and chat 20 years from now, for there could be a Broadway musical and ice show raking in billions off the songs alone. Just sayin’.
What’s clear is a mega millennial love for Lilo & Stitch that’s blossomed through the years, with the under-35 crowd showing up this weekend at 79%. Women bought tickets at 63% and gave the movie a 93% grade on Comscore/Screen Engine’s PostTrak.
Disney’s marketing team pulled out all the stops with an irreverent marketing campaign, dropping Stitch cameos in big cultural moments like the Super Bowl, where Stitch caused chaos on the field right after the coin flip with a 30 second spot that generated 173M views after 24 hours and trended at No. 10 on X.
Marketing’s strategic focus was also about selling moviegoers on the fact that this movie would kick off summer. If you can’t make it to Hawaii, well then Lilo & Stitch would bring you there. Every facet of the campaign led with Stitch’s star power and reminded audiences of the characters they know and love. What was also key was selling the pic not just as a fun one, but also on the weight of its emotional story of friendship, Ohana (found family), and choosing to be more than your circumstances.
Stitch crash-landed and wreaked havoc on marketing materials for other Disney classic, live-action and Marvel films including Moana 2, Mufasa: The Lion King, Snow White, Cinderella, Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast and Thunderbolts*. The lovable alien even busted through the Thunderbolts* Wheaties box.
Meanwhile at theaters, there was an Animatronic Stitch.
The first look of Stitch debuted at last August’s D23 and became the most-viewed announcement out of the entire event week after 24 hours. The pic’s trailer became Disney’s third most-viewed of all time with 158M views in its first day, ranking behind 2019’s Lion King teaser and full trailer.
Among the music pushes for the pic, there was the single release “Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride,” which was further boosted by a special performance from Iam Tongi on American Idol‘s Disney night. Soundtrack pre-orders also opened on May 9 for a May 21 drop that also included custom Stitch-shaped die-cut vinyl launches on May 23 available at Target. The Lilo & Stitch soundtrack also took over fan-favorite Disney playlists garnering over 100M+ streams per month.
Broadcast integrations included Stitch bursting onto the sets of Celebrity Wheel of Fortune and SportsCenter. There was also programming on Disney Channel airing special looks in Disney films and a Freeform tropical-themed movie stunt, plus marathon. Stitch also made cameos in custom spots for Disneyland tied to its 70th anniversary. Of note, there were promos for a Stitch Intergalactic Dance Party at Tomorrowland.
Similar to what we saw with Inside Out 2, Latino and Hispanic moviegoers fueled the ticket sales for Lilo & Stitch, who turned out at 41% per PostTrak, the leading diversity demographic. Stoking the quad, Disney held “Experiment 626” nights in markets like Alameda County, which had stunted community and influencer screenings (lei making stations, hula dancers, Stitch sandcastles, blue shaved ice) as well as partnerships with Big Brothers Big Sisters, Boys & Girls Clubs of America.
On TikTok, there was a global branded effect that allowed fans to dance next to Stitch. Lilo & Stitch became the first-ever Disney & TikTok global partner for “Spotlight,” a hub aggregating all UGC content featuring Stitch across the platform.
On SnapChat, there was a custom snap lens leveraging AR technology allowing fans to have Stitch crawl on their head and shoulders while wearing a lei, sunglasses, etc.
Also, in partnership with Industrial Light and Magic, Stitch was able to react to fans and press in real time through social livestreams, press junket interviews and talk show appearances.
Promo partners included Hawaiian Airlines with custom-wrapped planes and an in-app “Stitch Scavenger Hunt” with an interactive digital travel guide throughout the Hawaiian Islands, as well as a custom spots with Walmart, SPAM, T-Mobile for Business, Colourpop (a Gen-Z/millennial focused makeup brand), King’s Hawaiian, National Mango Board, Ono Hawaiian BBQ, Furbo (which had a custom pet camera spot featuring Stitch), Ray-Ban and Primark.
Here’s one final huzzah about the Dean Fleischer Camp-directed movie: It was made for a cost of $100M net before P&A. According to analysts this morning, given the rich ancillary downstreams for Lilo & Stitch, it will reach breakeven at a mere low point of $205M at the global box office, meaning that’s already happened after a global opening of $341.7M. Sans ancillaries, Lilo & Stitch would profit purely in the theatrical window as well at a breakeven point of $410M worldwide. That’s truly magical motion picture math.
As we told you, the record Memorial Day opening of the movie at $183M stateside, along with Paramount’s 4-day debut of Mission: Impossible – Final Reckoning, puts the summer on track per Comscore to $4.2 billion in U.S./Canada.
