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Uproar over 'skin color' after Sydney Agudong cast to play Nani in live-action remake of 'Lilo and Stitch'

Sydney Agudong is biracial and fair-skinned, in contrast to 'Lilo & Stitch' character Nani who has dark skin, black hair, and ethnic features

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Disney has found itself amid yet another controversy with the live-action 'Lilo & Stitch' in which actress Sydney Agudong is set to play Nani. The casting news prompted an online debate about misrepresentation and diversity issues in the industry. Maia Kealoha, a newcomer, will play Lilo, according to Disney. The 2024 live-action remake will also star Billy Magnussen and Zach Galifianakis.

Dean Fleischer Camp is directing the remake, which is established to be a major release on Disney+ and tells the story of a lonely human girl named Lilo and a dog-like alien named Stitch, who was genetically altered to be a force of destruction. With nosy social workers and pursuing aliens knocking on the door, the two bond over a shared sense of family and triumph.

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Nani's skin tone is crucial to the plot

'Lilo & Stitch' character, Nani, became the very first mainstream portrayal for many Pacific Islanders due to her brown skin and body shape. The actress Sydney Agudong, whose name has been cast as Nani in the upcoming film, is biracial and fair-skinned, in contrast to the character Nani, Lilo's elder sister, who was depicted in the original film with darker skin, black hair, and ethnic features. Many Pacific Islanders were upset that the studios were attempting to deny them representation. Check out their reactions right here.

'Casting is blatant colorism'

Fans have voiced their displeasure with the studios' decision to unveil the cast without contemplating the characteristics of the original characters, and one of them tweeted “Not being Indigenous or from a PoC community, it may not be easy to see a problem with this casting, but within our communities this is a big issue. Nani is Indigenous Hawaiian with strong features and dark skin, this casting is blatant colorism.”

Another fan said, “Listen, I will support Sydney Agudong as Nani, no matter what but, did Disney at least try to reach out to our girl, Sydney Park for the role?” A fan tweeted, “I know the actress is Hawaiian. But why didn’t they cast someone who’s also Hawaiian and dark skinned like Nani? What’s with some dark skinned characters being played by light skinned actors when adapted into live action?” A couple of them also said that it’s a fictional character adding that Nani is not real so it doesn’t matter.

'Pattern with Disney Projects'

Fans were immediately quick to point out that this reflected a pattern with Disney and moved on to compare Princess Jasmine's casting in Disney's live-action remake of 'Aladdin' in 2019, who was played by Naomi Scott, a biracial British actor of Indian ancestry, whereas Princess Jasmine was said to be an indecisive mix of South Asia and the Middle East. One user wrote, "oh disney we got a problem." While another wrote, "Okay but why is it that if these two swapped roles they would fit the original animated depictions almost perfectly."

Even back then, audiences chose to call Disney out for whitewashing the original character, Princess Jasmine being the only Disney princess with dark skin at the time the animated film was released in 1992. Many were furious when Halle Bailey was cast as Ariel in the live-action remake of 'The Little Mermaid'. Some people also stated in their tweets that no one requested a live-action 'Lilo & Stich' because the movie and shows are ideal, and that, as a brown kid, they had a lack of representation growing up and that seeing Disney not cast brown actors to play Nani and Lilo is so hurtful.

With their upcoming Disney live-action remakes, the casting departments are putting forth an effort. This involves casting race-blind for iconic princesses like Snow White and Ariel, as well as casting Hawaiian actors for the lead roles in Lilo & Stitch. However, because defined characters like Nani have well-known skin tones, many more factors must be considered in this process.

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.