It’s long been rumored that the much-loved animated Disney movie “Lilo & Stitch” is getting its own live-action movie that no one seems to know if it’s really coming or not.
However, there’s been reports that Disney has already found the director to helm the planned remake!
In an exclusive scoop by The Hollywood Reporter, “Crazy Rich Asians” director Jon M. Chu is up for a Hawaiian rollercoaster ride as he is currently in negotiations to helm the live-action “Lilo & Stitch” film. Not much else has been revealed about the project but if there’s anything to take from this, it’s that an adaptation really is in the pipeline and could be coming within the next couple of years.
The original film’s writer and directors, Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders, however, have openly expressed their disapproval of the remake, worried that having a new team come on board to helm it would be “disingenuous” to the original.
“I’d rather see something original — especially for a studio that’s such a pioneer of originality, that bugs me. Knowing how well-to-do the studio is, how capable they are of taking risks, and watching them not take risk. What bothers me the most is that it seems to suggest the animated version of it is lesser. It is a lesser form than the expensive, glossy live action,” DeBlois previously said in an interview.
“Lilo & Stitch was so quirky, such a singular voice. It was Chris [Sanders]’s sensibility brought to life in such a personal way. It started as a children’s story [he was working on],” DeBlois further explained. “It’s so specific, that the idea of another team coming in to remake it without Chris involved — without any of the team involved — is kind of crazy. It’s not a time tested classic. It’s not a fairytale. It’s not a staple of folklore. It’s as individual as it could be.”
(ALSO READ: ‘The Powerpuff Girls’ is Getting a Live-Action Film, And It’s Not Gonna Be For Kids…)
“Lilo & Stitch” follows the story of a young eccentric girl who ends up adopting a “dog” she names Stitch, unbeknownst to her that it is actually a dangerous extra-terrestrial life form called Experiment 626. It grew to success for its core message about “ohana” (meaning family) as well as its use of six beloved songs by Elvis Presley in the official soundtrack.
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