Maia Kealoha and Sydney Agudong, stars of the new live-action Lilo & Stitch movie, recently spoke with Terri Seymour from Extra about the film.
Maia, who is 8 years old and plays Lilo, shared how important it was to her to showcase Hawaii. She said, “We wanted everyone to see the importance of Ohana. We wanted to show them Hawaii — the beaches and all around the islands. We put our hearts and souls into it. And we want people to know that you don’t have to be perfect to be perfect.”
Sydney added that filming at home in Hawaii was very special. “It’s been a dream for both of us to film at home,” she said. “We were with our community the whole time. Most of the cast and crew were from Hawaii. It was really amazing to create this beautiful environment and make our own family.”
Sydney also talked about her close relationship with Maia. She said Maia feels like a sister to her, and she believes audiences will feel the same. “The whole world will fall in love with her,” Sydney said. “She has become my hanai sister. Our family is their family, and vice versa. I’m really excited for people to see how funny and much like Lilo she is. People will love her.”
The word “hanai” is a Hawaiian term that means to informally adopt someone into your family.
At the box office, Lilo & Stitch is competing with Mission: Impossible. Maia jokingly said that Tom Cruise “should be scared!”
Lilo & Stitch will be in theaters starting May 23.
