"I just want to say, I tried" — "Lilo & Stitch" director responds to fans criticism over Pleakley disguising himself as a man instead of a woman

Dean Fleischer Camp, director of Lilo & Stitch, responded to fans’ questions about the movie’s character, Pleakley. According to an X post by Pop Crave, Camp was asked why Pleakley didn’t wear a woman’s dress in the film. In a TikTok video, he said:

“I have had people message me, ‘Why is Pleakley not wearing a dress?’ And I just want to say, I tried. I tried.”

According to a report by Time, in the original animated movie, Agent Pleakley was sent to Earth to search for Stitch, one of the protagonists of the story. In the process, the character wore women’s clothes to avoid revealing his true identity.

However, the 2025 Lilo & Stitch showed the character as a human wearing male clothing. Some social media users expressed disappointment, noting that Pleakley had been viewed by many as a drag icon in the original film.

“So it’s another reason to stick to animation. Got it,” a netizen reacted.

“Not watching the movie without a cross dressing alien tbh,” a social media user commented.

“The only thing I’ll say about Lilo & Stitch (besides probably watching the original later) is that making Jumba the villain and Pleakley no longer crossdress is more proof of the rising queerphobia in our culture,” another X user posted.

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly about Lilo & Stitch on May 9, 2025, Dean Fleischer Camp explained that while the idea of characters in disguise was funny in animation, it didn’t work as well in live action—especially with details like Pleakley’s one eye.

He also said keeping the characters in disguise would have taken resources away from focusing on Stitch and other important elements. Though Jumba and Pleakley were still shown as aliens, they spent part of the movie in human-like appearances.

Lilo & Stitch was Dean Fleischer Camp’s favorite animated movie

Speaking about the titular character’s role in Lilo & Stitch, Camp explained that Stitch’s humor came from his tendency to destroy things. However, showing violence in a live-action film was more challenging because it felt different than in animation.

For example, a big car crash might seem funny in a cartoon but would be hard to make humorous in live action. So, he said the team had to adjust or tone down parts that didn’t translate well to real life, while also discovering new creative opportunities that weren’t possible in animation.

Commenting on the voice actors in Lilo & Stitch, Camp said:

“Jason Scott Lee probably has the smallest role of those four. He plays Nani's manager at the luau, but he still has a few scenes and is definitely in it, if you know who he is.”

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He said Tia Carrere, who voiced Nani, improvised the role with a more personal touch that ended up making it better. In a conversation with Screen Rant, Camp said he focused on keeping the original Lilo & Stitch’s sense of authenticity.

He said it had always been his favorite Disney animated movie, mainly because of co-director Chris Sanders’ unique and personal drawing style. According to Camp, that style made the characters feel more real and a bit imperfect in a relatable way.

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