Disney's live-action film "Lilo & Stitch" (directed by Dean Fleischer-Camp, released June 6th) was released in the United States and other countries on May 23rd, ahead of Japan. In its second week in the United States, it grossed 63 million dollars (about 9 billion yen) over the three days from May 30th to June 1st, making it the number one film for two consecutive weeks.
The film beat out the Tom Cruise-starring "Mission: Impossible - Final Reckoning," which was released in the US on the same day, and recorded the number one start with box office revenue of 183 million dollars (approximately 26.1 billion yen) in the opening four days (May 23-26), including Memorial Day (the last Monday in May, Memorial Day) (according to Box Office Mojo; 1 dollar = 143 yen, as of June 1).
In its second week, it far surpassed "Mission: Impossible - Final Reckoning" and has grossed over $280 million (approximately 40 billion yen), approaching the $420 million grossed by "Minecraft: The Movie," which is currently the top grossing movie in the US this year. Furthermore, its global gross has already surpassed $600 million (approximately 87 billion yen).
A preview screening was held in Japan in May ahead of the film's release on June 6. Many viewers who saw it posted on social media comments such as, "The beautiful scenery of Hawaii and the emotions of the characters were really conveyed, which is something you only get in a live-action version, and I thought, this is what I wanted to see!!", "I could feel the respect for animation, the level of reproduction was high, and I could enjoy the originality of the live-action version", and "I was sobbing at the end, I nearly burst out in tears!"
The film is a live-action adaptation of the Disney animated film of the same name produced in 2002. It is a fantasy set on the island of Kauai in Hawaii, depicting the important bond of "ohana (family)." A young girl named Lilo and her older sister Nani, who have lost their parents, are confronted by Stitch, a rowdy alien who knows no family love. Stitch's unpredictable actions cause chaos on the peaceful island, but this miraculous encounter eventually changes the sisters who were close to losing hope.
In the Japanese dubbed version, Stitch is played by voice actor Koichi Yamadera, Lilo is played by child actress Yuno Nagao, Nani is played by MOMONA from the 11-member girl group ME:I, the voice of the kind-hearted surfer David is played by Kaito Nakamura from the popular group Travis Japan, and the alien Preekly is played by voice actor Yuji Mitsuya.
