Live-Action Lilo & Stitch Casts Zach Galifianakis

Lilo & Stitch may not have been part of the Disney Renaissance back in the 90s, but it’s still one of the more memorable animated films to come out of the studio in the early 2000s. A live-action adaptation is in the works for Disney+, and the movie has just made one key cast member.

As per The Wrap, Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover, Between Two Ferns) has joined the live-action Lilo & Stitch as Pleakley, the alien who was an alleged expert on Earth, and had been tasked to make sure that there were no Earth casualties in the pursuit of Experiment 626 a.k.a. Stitch.

We don’t know how the role will be brought to life in live-action, but I have a feeling that it’s going to be a completely CG character with Galifianakis providing the voice. Then again, they could go with someone in a practical suit, since Pleakley does spend a good chunk of the movie in disguise as a human.

Any fan of Lilo & Stitch also knows that Pleakley is very explicitly portrayed as queer in the show, with the character’s affinity to dress as a woman, and preferring to be called ‘Aunt Pleakley’ by the family. There is actually a lot of discussion as to Pleakley’s sexuality, but some are suggesting that it doesn’t really matter to him because he’s an alien and just simply prefers to dress like a woman despite keeping the he/him pronouns.

Then again, the character was made around a very different time, so it would be interesting to see how the live-action movie could address that in today’s social climate.

No release date has been set, but watch out for the live-action Lilo & Stitch when it comes out on Disney+.