Disney Replaces Kahiau Machado As David In Live-Action ‘Lilo & Stitch’ Remake Due To His Past Use Of Racial Slurs On Social Media
In a development that will undoubtedly be taken as a victory by the numerous activists who accused him of being ‘too light-skinned’ to portray the character, Disney has officially replaced Kahiau Machado as the live-action Lilo & Stitch remake’s incarnation of David thanks to his social media history.
This announcement coming just four days after his casting was initially announced, with Machado’s forced exit, the role of Nani’s wave-savy beau will instead be played actor Kaipo Dudoit, who at current holds only a single Hollywood credit for having briefly guest-starred as the character Keno in the 34th overall episode of the 2018 Magnum P.I. reboot.
Alongside Dudoit’s casting, it was also revealed that not only will the voice of Nani in the animated original, Tia Carrere, be appearing in the film as new character Mrs. Kekoa, but that IP creator, writer, and Stitch’s original voice actor Chris Sanders is in final negotiations to reprise his role as the titular alien.
According to a source who spoke to The Hollywood Reporter, Machado – who the outlet notes was “not officially confirmed” for the role by Disney – was canned after it was discovered that he had previously used the racial slur ‘n****a’ on social media.
The two specific instances brought to widespread attention by the more obsessive of the actor’s critics include his use of the name ‘n****a noise’ for a Spotify playlist:
And his giving named credit for one of a previous Facebook profile pic to his friend by his nickname, “Kapono ‘Sandy N****a’ Lizama”:
As noted above, this casting development comes hot on the heels of Machado – despite possessing Haiwaiian heritage – being accused by Disney’s current identity-politics-obsessed fanbase of not being appropriately ‘ethnic’ enough for the role.
Machado was not the first of the Lilo & Stitch remake’s cast to receive this criticism either, as upon her casting, current Nani actress (barring any unforeseen and disingenuous smear campaigns being likewise raised against her) Sydney Agudong was attacked by the same such activists for the same reason.
Directed by Marcel the Shell With Shoes On creator Dean Fleischer Camp and set to premiere directly to Disney Plus, Disney’s live-action Lilo & Stitch remake has yet to receive an official release date.
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