Lilo & Stitch director addresses one key change to live-action Pleakley’s design in the upcoming remake. Played by Billy Magnussen in the upcoming movie, which will arrive in theaters on May 23, Pleakley is a self-proclaimed “Earth expert” who is sent to catch Experiment 626, aka Stitch. The character is known for its cross-dressing and using various disguises in the original film, a key feature that’s missing in Lilo & Stitch‘s new trailer.
In response to the many questions fans have about the new movie, Dean Fleischer Camp has taken to TikTok to offer some answers. The director shared the concept art of Pleakley and explained that they have “tried.” However, due to the drastic difference between mediums, they had to make changes accordingly. Check out his comment below:
I have had people messaging me, why is Pleakley not wearing the dress? And I just want to say: I tried.
What This Means For Lilo & Stitch
Jumba And Pleakley’s Funniest Moments Will Be Different In Lilo & Stitch
Pleakley and Jumbo’s use of horoscopic technology as their method for disguises has been one of the most controversial changes Lilo & Stitch made, especially since their original led to a series of funny wardrobe malfunctions in the 2002 movie. The change would mean that many of their best moments won’t make it into the remake.
Related
Lilo & Stitch Just Fixed The Biggest Problem With Disney’s Live-Action Remakes, 6 Years After The Lion King Started It
A recent trailer for Disney’s live-action Lilo & Stitch has finally confirmed that the movie fixes one animation element the company once butchered.
In the same video, the director explained that they’ve “spent a lot of time” trying to adapt the characters while staying true to the original movie. He stressed that animation is “an abstraction,” and the various ways to make the characters expressive in two-dimensional work can’t be directly translated into a live-action movie, which resulted in the changes. Still, Camp teased in an interview that Jumba and Pleakley’s journey is his favorite part of the story.
Our Take On Pleakley’s Design Change In Lilo & Stitch
It Makes So Much Sense Now
With the concept art of Pleakley cross-dressing, the question of why it didn’t make it into the upcoming Lilo & Stitch is self-explanatory. As seen in the movie, their true alien form is drastically different from humans, and it’s simply not believable for viewers that they were able to disguise themselves by dressing differently.
On the other hand, Pleakley and Jumba’s new character design in the live-action remake also brings the element of surprise to Lilo & Stitch, and as teased in the trailer, there are certainly ways for the aliens’ journey on Earth to be hilarious. Pleakley and Jumba’s design change may not end up being a bad thing for the highly anticipated Disney animation remake.
Source: Dean Feischer Camp/TikTok
Lilo & Stitch
- Release Date
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May 21, 2025
- Runtime
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108 Minutes
- Director
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Dean Fleischer Camp
- Writers
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Chris Kekaniokalani Bright, Mike Van Waes, Chris Sanders, Dean DeBlois
- Producers
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Tom C. Peitzman, Dan Lin, Ryan Halprin
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Chris Sanders
Stitch (voice)
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Billy Magnussen
Pleakley (voice)
