The following contains spoilers for Lilo & Sтιтch, now playing in theatersWhile the underlying story may be the same, the 2025 remake of Lilo & Sтιтch makes some pretty distinct changes from the source material. Based on the 2002 animated film of the same name, Lilo & Sтιтch follows a young girl in Hawaii who adopts a blue “dog” that turns out to be a nigh-indestructible and comically chaotic alien. The emotional core of the two films is very similar, with Lilo & Sтιтch‘s cast featuring many of the same focus characters.

However, there are some important additions and changes to the characters in the story, including a villainous amplification for one character that more or less renders the animated film’s villain moot. The new Lilo & Sтιтch also expands the ending and inserts some grounded elements that help add depth to the film. Here are the biggest ways that Lilo & Sтιтch diverge from the original movie.

7

Nani Gets More Character Depth In The New Lilo & Sтιтch

Nani Gets More Backstory And Motivations In 2025’s Lilo & Sтιтch

Lilo & Sтιтch uses the live-action shift and the streamlined plot to add depth to functionally the same story, with the expansion of Nani as a character serving as a clear example of that expansion. Nani is Lilo’s older sister and sudden caretaker after the death of their parents, with both versions of the character struggling to stay ahead of social services and their concern for Lilo. The new film expands on what Nani had been into before the death of her parents, drawing attention to the sadness of putting all that aside to provide for her sister.

This includes an expansion of Nani’s college ambitions, which include a focus on marine biology and a full scholarship waiting for her. This gives Nani a more tragic edge, as it also puts emphasis on her youth compared to the more inherently mature-seeming animated version. This plays into the film’s expansion of the themes about family and never leaving anyone behind — with Lilo, Tūtū, and Mrs. Kekoa all arguing with Nani that she can’t forget to take care of herself too. It’s an effective way to flesh out the original character that still fits with the story and themes.

6

Jumba Is The Main Villain Of 2025’s Lilo & Sтιтch

Jumba Doesn’t Get To Become An Ally To Lilo And Sтιтch

One of the biggest changes to Lilo & Sтιтch‘s remake is the decision to turn Jumba into the villain of the film. In 2002’s Lilo & Sтιтch, Jumba was a brilliant scientist who invented plenty of dangerous creatures like Sтιтch. ᴀssigned to the recovery mission alongside Agent Pleakley to recover Sтιтch, Jumba is destructive but jovial in the animated film. This builds to him finding a home on the planet with Pleakley and eventually working his way into Lilo’s extended family in the subsequent TV sequels. However, the live-action movie plays him much more villainously.

Jumba in 2025’s Lilo & Sтιтch is less bombastic and typically has a drier delivery for his comments. This gives him a more sinister edge than the original had, an element of the character that Zach Galifianakis plays into as he becomes more overtly vindictive. While Pleakley eventually follows the general arc of his animated counterpart and gets the ability to stay on Earth, Jumba’s efforts to recapture Sтιтch destroy Lilo’s home, set off the climactic third act, and get him recaptured by the Galactic Council.

5

Lilo & Sтιтch Entirely Cut The Original Movie’s Main Villain

Gantu Doesn’t Have Any Notable Role In Lilo & Sтιтch

The decision to recast Jumba as the primary antagonist of Lilo & Sтιтch is such a big change on the plot, it results in the complete erasure of the original film’s primary antagonist. Voiced by Michael Clark in the 2002 film, Gantu was one of the Galactic Councilwoman’s primary agents and was quickly established as one of Sтιтch’s direct foes. After being told to apprehend Sтιтch himself, the more destructive Gantu traveled to Earth and endangered numerous lives in his failed attempt to catch the little blue alien.

Due to the restructuring of the plot to make Jumba the central threat of the film, Gantu is removed from the new film. He does not appear in any major capacity in the plot, with Jumba instead setting off a similar climax involving Lilo being trapped on a spaceship. This could allow Gantu to appear in any hypothetical sequel to the film, however, potentially serving a similar antaognistic role to the one he played in the original movie and the animated series that followed.

4

Agent Bubbles Is A Very Different Character In The New Lilo & Sтιтch

Bubbles Has A More Grounded Backstory Compared To His Animated Counterpart

Agent Bubbles has some core similarities to his Lilo & Sтιтch counterpart, but the two versions of the character are fundamentally different with divergent backstories. Bubbles is an agent with the CIA in the new film, tasked with investigating Sтιтch’s arrival on Earth. He continues his investigation into Lilo by posing undercover as a social worker involved in Lilo and Nani’s case. In the original cartoon, Bubbles was actually the case worker for Lilo and Nani, with the natural depth of Ving Rhames’ vocal performance making him an intimidating reminder that Nani could easily lose Lilo.

Courtney B. Vance plays Bubbles with a more openly emotional side, leading him to free Pleakley in time to help stop Jumba from escaping into space with Lilo and Sтιтch. He’s also shown to not be familiar with aliens before the events of the film. This is in contrast to the original, where Bubbles is revealed to have been present for a human/alien interaction decades before the film and was even the one to convince the aliens that the mosquitoes are an endangered species. Vance’s Bubbles also ends the film more overtly accepted into Lilo and Nani’s extended family.

3

Two New Characters Change Lilo & Sтιтch’s Story In Big Ways

Two of the biggest changes to the modern Lilo & Sтιтch from the original animated film are major additions to the cast. One of the most important supporting characters in the film is Amy Hill’s Tūtū, a joyful and blunt grandmother who has been a neighbor to the Pelekais for years. Tūtū serves as comic relief at various points in the film, and is also established as the grandmother of Nani’s love interest David. Tūtū plays a big part in the film’s ending by helping revive Sтιтch after he almost drowns, and she opens up her home to Lilo.

Because Agent Bubbles is now a CIA agent instead of the social worker ᴀssigned to Lilo and Nani, the new film adds Tia Carrere as Mrs. Kekoa. A well-meaning and empathetic woman, Kekoa is a softer approach to the social worker than the more naturally intimidating Bubbles in the original film. She even ends up playing into the film’s final reveal, working with Tūtū to make sure that Lilo and Nani’s neighbor can serve as Lilo’s guardian while Nani goes to college at the end of the film.

2

Lilo & Sтιтch Confirms A Fan-Favorite Disney Couple (That 2002’s Lilo & Sтιтch Only Teased)

The Lilo & Sтιтch Credits Confirm David And Nani’s Romantic Relationship

In the original Lilo & Sтιтch, Nani was given a clear love interest in her friend and co-worker, David. David is a minor character in the film who fleshes out the story, with several implications that he and Nani are attracted to one another. However, the film’s focus on Nani, Lilo, and Sтιтch kept that story from fully developing. It wouldn’t be until the TV sequels that David and Nani would get a full romance storyline.

Initially, Lilo & Sтιтch seems to be following that direction. Although David is a bit more tongue-tied and silly in the live-action version, the character largely plays a similar role as he did in the first film. However, the montage of pictures during the end credits includes a snapsH๏τ of Nani and David sharing a kiss while at the airport, suggesting that the pair did actually begin a romance after the events of the movie. This could be a fun element to explore in a hypothetical sequel to the film.

1

The Ending To 2025’s Lilo & Sтιтch Is Different From The Animated Original In Some Important Ways

Lilo Get A New Guardian For The Former And Nani Goes To College But They’re Still Family

The ending of Lilo & Sтιтch is ultimately a more realistic conclusion to the story, even with the continued presence of aliens. The animated film ended with Lilo, Sтιтch, and Nani reunited alongside their new adopted family that includes David, Jumba, Pleakley, and Bubbles. In the new film, Pleakley and Bubbles seem to be accepted into the group, alongside David and Tūtū. Pleakley, who has lost his preference for female femme-coded clothing from the original movie, is still accepted by the group as the Galactic Council’s representative, even as Jumba is detained.

Although Nani does seem to lose her role as Lilo’s legal guardian by the end of the film in exchange for the state government covering Lilo’s medical bills, Tūtū’s decision to foster Lilo allows them to remain home and together. The use of stolen teleporter technology even allows Nani to easily visit from college to her home, ending the film with the sweet visual of the two sisters (along with Sтιтch) cuddling under the covers. It’s a cute and more fleshed-out ending for Lilo & Sтιтch that does a good job of feeling consistent with the original.