'Lilo & Stitch' Nears $1 Billion as Nostalgic Female-Led Films Thrive

Disney’s Lilo & Stitch continues to shake up the box office, overtaking Warner Bros and Legendary’s pixelated hit The Minecraft Movie to become the highest-grossing MPA film of 2025 so far, with $957.6 million worldwide, including $553.9 million internationally. The Minecraft Movie trails closely with $954.9 million globally and $530.9 million overseas. These two are currently the only films to surpass $900 million this year.

Now in its sixth week of release, Dean Fleischer Camp’s Lilo & Stitch remains on course to become the first Hollywood film of 2025 to cross the billion-dollar mark. However, Minecraft still leads domestically with $423.9 million against Lilo & Stitch’s $403.7 million. Both titles are the only 2025 releases to exceed $400 million in the US.

Post-pandemic and strike-affected times have bolstered studio confidence in theatrical releases. Notably, there is significant commercial potential in nostalgic, female-targeted properties such as Lilo & Stitch (62% female audience), How to Train Your Dragon (50%), and Moana 2 (71%).

Top markets for Lilo & Stitch include Mexico ($66.1M), the UK ($47.1M), France ($39.8M), Brazil ($36M), Germany ($30.2M), Spain ($25.9M), China ($25.2M), Italy ($24.5M), Argentina ($19M), Australia ($18.8M), Japan ($16.3M), and Central America ($15.8M). It is the highest-grossing film of 2025 in France, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, Latin America, and several other territories.

The film ranks among the top all-time box office earners in Brazil, Mexico, and Latin America overall. It is also Disney’s highest-grossing live-action title ever in Mexico and numerous smaller markets.

Domestically, Lilo & Stitch opened to $182.6 million over four days, marking the biggest Memorial Day weekend opening ever.

It was a logical move for Disney to adapt the 2002 animated original, which grossed $145.7 million domestically and $274.7 million worldwide. The Lilo & Stitch franchise, including the series and original film, has amassed over 579 million hours viewed on Disney+ globally, with the original alone accounting for more than 306 million hours.

Retail sales for Stitch-related merchandise have soared from $200 million in 2019 to $2.6 billion in 2024 — a tenfold increase. Stitch ranks among Disney’s top ten evergreen franchises, each surpassing $1 billion in retail sales last year. A live-action sequel was announced just last week.