Disney will release a live-action remake of Snow White next year starring Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot. However, a recent controversy has left some guessing whether this will cause trouble at the box office. Due to social media, actors and creatives are under more scrutiny than ever, with many facing repercussions for things they may have done and posted in the past.
The controversy arose recently for two reasons, first due to a set of photo leaks revealing Rachel Zegler’s titular Disney princess alongside her seven traveling companions. Disney claimed the photo to be fake. It sparked uproar as the controversy drew attention to the replacement of the seven dwarves. “To avoid reinforcing stereotypes from the original animated film, we are taking a different approach with these seven characters and have been consulting with members of the dwarfism community… We look forward to sharing more as the film heads into production after a lengthy development period,” a Disney spokesperson confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter.
Rachel Zegler’s Comments on the Remake
In an interview with Variety, Zegler panned the story as outdated. “I just mean that it’s no longer 1937. We absolutely wrote a ‘Snow White’ that … she’s not going to be saved by the prince, and she’s not going to be dreaming about true love; she’s going to be dreaming about becoming the leader she knows she can be and that her late father told her that she could be if she was fearless, fair, brave and true.”
She diminished the role of Andrew Burnap, joking, “We have a different approach to what I’m sure a lot of people will assume is a love story just because we cast a guy in the movie. All of Andrew’s scenes could get cut, who knows? It’s Hollywood, baby!”
Even though Burnap will play the male lead, he will not go by Prince Charming. But rather play the role of a character called Jonathan. The actor told Man About Town, Jonathan will be “less of a full-on prince and more of a reluctant hero.”
Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Zegler expressed how she had never been a fan of Snow White, which disappointed fans. “I was scared of the original cartoon, I think I watched it once and then I never picked it up again. Like I’m being so serious, I watched it once and then went on the ride at Disneyworld which was called Snow White’s Scary Adventures – doesn’t sound like something a little kid would like – was terrified of it, never revisited Snow White again. So, I watched it for the first time in 16, 17 years when I was doing this film.”
David Hand on the Snow White Controversy
David Hand, the son of the original 1937 movie’s director of the same name, hit back against Zegler. In an interview with Telegraph Hand said, “It’s a whole different concept and I just totally disagree with it, and I know my dad and Walt would also very much disagree with it.” He continued, “Their thoughts are just so radical now. They change the stories, they change the thought process of the characters, … they’re making up new woke things and I’m just not into any of that. I find it quite frankly a bit insulting [what] they may have done with some of these classic films. … There’s no respect for what Disney did and what my dad did. … I think Walt and he would be turning in their graves.”
Will the Snow White Remake Struggle At the Box Office?
Snow White may suffer at the box office due to the negative publicity. If not for the negative press, it may struggle as Little Mermaid did for its casting of Halle Bailey. The live-action remake is bound to face backlash due to the many changes it will bring to the original story. Or perhaps, curiosity regarding the changes in Disney’s Snow White might bring the audience to the theatres. Maybe interest the viewers to give it a watch upon its home release or on Disney+.
Snow White hits theaters on March 22, 2024. Although reports have claimed Disney remake will almost certainly delay the release.
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