‘Lilo & Stitch’ Grabs a Record Memorial Day Box Office Weekend

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.

Deadline reports that Disney did indeed 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.

Impressive marketing from Disney

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, way 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.

Related New Live-Action ‘Lilo & Stitch’ Ending Sparks Fan Outrage Over Major Change

The original Lilo & Stitch eventually 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.

The live action was made for a cost of $100M net before P&A. According to analysts, 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.

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.

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