Disney’s slate of animated-to-live-action remakes has seen plenty of success, and plenty of turbulence. Now, Hercules—a title that’s been in the works for several years—is reportedly experiencing yet another creative shift, leaving its future unclear once more.
In the wake of back-to-back box office hits like Beauty and the Beast (2017), Aladdin (2019), and The Lion King (2019), Disney committed heavily to reimagining its animated classics. After Peter Pan & Wendy and The Little Mermaid landed in 2023, Mufasa: The Lion King followed in 2024, directed by Barry Jenkins. Despite fierce box office competition, Mufasa brought in over $720 million globally.
By the time Snow White arrived in March 2025—delayed by a year and starring Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot—Disney was still optimistic. However, the film’s critical reception never quite recovered from its early backlash, and it underperformed both critically and commercially, becoming one of Disney’s most expensive misfires.
That failure prompted speculation that Disney was re-evaluating its entire live-action slate. And for a moment, that seemed to be the case. But Lilo & Stitch, which premiered in May 2025 and is currently on track to cross $1 billion with $948 million already earned, gave Disney’s remake strategy a jolt of momentum.
Next up is the Moana remake, with Dwayne Johnson reprising his role as Maui. But beyond that, the fate of Hercules has been a question mark.
First announced with Guy Ritchie as director and Dave Callaham writing, the film is being developed by Anthony and Joe Russo’s AGBO production company. While Disney has kept specific plot and casting details under wraps, speculation has swirled online. Fans have rallied behind the idea of Danny DeVito reprising his role as Phil, and other names like Michael B. Jordan, Taron Egerton, Ariana Grande, and Dua Lipa have been frequently mentioned.
Then came a major twist in late 2023, suggesting the movie’s focus would shift from its titular hero to the villain.
According to Toonado, “[S]cooper Daniel Richtman is reporting that the project has undergone an extensive overhaul, and will now play out from the perspective of the villainous Hades–which may actually turn out to be the title of the movie.”
If true, the project would follow in the footsteps of Maleficent (2014), which told its story from the villain’s viewpoint and gave a platform for Angelina Jolie to redefine the character. Considering Hades’ popularity in the 1997 animated version—where he was voiced by James Woods—the concept had potential.
However, in a new report from The DisInsider, it appears that the Hades-centric version has been shelved in favor of a more traditional approach, possibly due to the success of Lilo & Stitch, which stuck closely to the 2002 original.
“This project has gone through some creative struggles both from the studio side and the creatives side,” The DisInsider wrote in its recent Q&A. “While a retooled Hercules story was the route the creatives wanted to go, the studio has decided the direction they will go is a faithful adaptation of the animated film, which you can thank the success of Lilo & Stitch for.”
That leaves Hercules in limbo. Disney has yet to publicly confirm whether the project is still active—or what version might ultimately go into production. The same uncertainty hovers over other planned remakes, like the Tangled adaptation from Michael Gracey, which was gaining momentum before hitting a potential pause after Snow White’s poor showing.
Adding to the confusion is the contradiction between this new update and earlier comments from producer Joe Russo. Speaking in 2022, Russo described Hercules as a project that would take creative risks, particularly in how it tackled musical elements.
“There are questions about how you translate it as a musical,” Russo told the outlet. “Audiences today have been trained by TikTok, right? What is their expectation of what that musical looks like and feels like? That can be a lot of fun and help us push the boundaries a little bit on how you execute a modern musical.”
Whether Hercules ultimately leans experimental or sticks to its animated origins remains to be seen—but either way, the road to Mount Olympus isn’t looking like a straight line.
