Courtney B. Vance, Tia Carrere and Chris Sanders say Disney’s live-action version of Lilo & Stitch celebrates the concept of “hanai family”—chosen or adopted family bound by love rather than blood.

Vance plays the live-action version of CIA agent Cobra Bubbles, the government agent tasked with capturing Stitch. He said the character evolves throughout the film as he experiences the bond between Lilo and Nani.

“Well, my character initially wasn’t about Ohana, okay?” Vance said jokingly to Blavity’s Shadow and Act during our cast interview, explaining how his character softens after witnessing Lilo’s love for Stitch. “But I [my character] grew and I changed and I took in the family spirit that was completely contrary to the way I was trained. That’s how strong it must have been for me to get that phone call [about Lilo and Nani] and go, ‘What are you gonna do?’”

Honoring Hawaiian culture and chosen family

Carrere, who voiced Nani in the original animated film and now plays social worker Mrs. Kekoa, added that the cast behind the new version quickly bonded over the story’s themes.

“Although, you know, it would appear that we’re [Cobra Bubbles and Mrs. Kekoa] taking the family apart, we all somehow pulled together and tried to uplift each other,” she said. “And you know, in Hawaii, we have this thing called hanai family, which is an adopted family. You know, family’s where you find it. It doesn’t have to be your blood mother or father, sister, brother. If you find like-minded people that have your back, that’s your family—your hanai family.”

Why fans still see themselves in Stitch

Sanders, who directed the original film and voices Stitch in both versions, said the character’s imperfections are what make him so universally loved.

“I think that Stitch’s mix of impulse control problems and the mistakes that he makes and his desire to really fix things, he’s very much like we are. I think that’s why people have always identified with him,” he said. “I originally wrote him and created him to just pretty much act like I act, because he can be a handful sometimes. But I think the reason he really, really connected with people is because they see themselves in him to some degree.”

Watch the rest of the cast interviews, including a special moment with Stitch himself, above Lilo & Stitch hits theaters now.

Chris Sanders

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