Disney’s “Hexed” gets a new “Lilo & Stitch” short in November 25 theaters

Walt Disney Animation Studios just attached a brand-new “Lilo & Stitch” animated short to “Hexed,” and it will hit theaters on November 25 alongside the feature. The short is titled “Lilo & Scratch,” and it is not just a marketing accessory. At Annecy 2026, directors Fawn Veerasunthorn and Malcon Pierce previewed snippets and tests that were explicitly aimed at approximating the original 2002 film’s look, described as traditional hand-drawn animation with watercolor backgrounds.

That matters because Disney is trying to do something production teams usually treat as a problem to manage, not a promise to keep: make a modern pipeline look like a specific historical craft style. The team said they used a combination of techniques for “Lilo & Scratch,” including traditional animation, watercolor backgrounds, and “fascimilies” of both using computer technology. In the festival showcase, they put up six backgrounds from the short, noting that only two were actual watercolors, and participants were unable to tell the difference. That is the executive-level takeaway: this is not nostalgia cosplay. It is a capability demonstration for a premium visual language.

This sits in a wider context that studios and investors both watch, even if they do not always call it that out loud. The source notes that last summer’s live-action adaptation of the original “Lilo & Stitch” grossed $1 billion. That kind of performance reshapes corporate expectations quickly. It signals that the brand has commercial durability, and it also raises the internal bar for “what else can we ship that feels like the property, not just uses the logo.” So when Disney adds “Lilo & Scratch” to “Hexed,” it is leveraging a proven franchise flywheel while trying to keep the creative identity intact.

On the creative side, the short also leans on continuity in a way that is unusually explicit for an “ancillary” piece. Chris Sanders returns to voice Stitch, and he is not only the voice actor. He directed the original 2002 film with Dean DeBlois, and the source says he has voiced the character pretty much ever since, including in last summer’s $1 billion-grossing live-action adaptation. Sanders is also set to return to write and direct the sequel to the live-action film, which ties the animated pipeline and the live-action slate together through the same creative nucleus.

There is also casting continuity for Lilo. The source says Maia Kealoha, who played Lilo in the 2025 remake, returns to voice Lilo in “Lilo & Scratch.” Daveigh Chase, who voiced Lilo in the original animated film, passed away 10 days ago. For decision-makers, that is a real-world reminder that entertainment production is never only about art or only about business. It is also about managing the emotional weight of legacy roles while keeping production on schedule.

The most intriguing festival moment was not a dialogue scene, it was the technique test. Veerasunthorn and Pierce showed a shot from the original film that they tried to copy exactly. Side-by-side, the shots looked identical until the new shot rotated, revealing that both Lilo and Stitch were 3D models. That is a useful mental model for anyone tracking modern animation: you can approximate 2D appearance at rest, then reveal the underlying structure when motion exposes it. Then they showed a second test where Stitch interacts with Scratch, the new cat Lilo decides to adopt. Scratch is another alien and starts shooting lasers out of her eyes. The source emphasizes that Stitch was a 3D character while Scratch was a 2D character, yet they looked perfect together and interacted in the same frame.

Even more, a prop Stitch is holding goes from 3D to 2D, and the source says you cannot tell. This is exactly the kind of “behind-the-scenes” technical detail that impacts what studios can sell. If audiences cannot detect the trick, then the studio can scale production without breaking the look. That has second-order implications for budgets, schedules, and how much a franchise can expand without alienating its base. It also suggests a workflow where more shots can be produced with repeatable visual control, while still hitting a signature style target.

Finally, the short’s preview itself gives you the story shape. Veerasunthorn and Pierce showed two minutes of “Lilo & Scratch,” set immediately following the events of the film. Lilo brings home Scratch, who attempts to eat Pudge, the fish that controls the weather, who has joined Lilo & Stitch at home in a fishbowl. Stitch repeatedly tries to save Pudge until they finally start to fight in the kitchen. The preview then escalates: Stitch reverts to his alien form with antennae and four arms, but Scratch out-alien-s him with similar antennae and even more arms, before the short cuts off. The only way to see the full short is to watch “Hexed” on November 25.

From an operator or board perspective, this is a smart use of packaging: the franchise sells itself, and Disney adds a premium creative differentiator that also functions as a technology showcase. For peers who finance, license, or launch studio slates, the underlying question is the same one every time: can you keep brand fidelity while modernizing the pipeline? “Lilo & Scratch” is Disney’s answer, and it is arriving in theaters on November 25, right when “Hexed” needs every advantage it can get.