Disney’s live-action “Snow White” movie has been riddled with controversy since it originally started production in 2022. Now that it is out in theaters, the film is only receiving more criticism for its reimagining of the beloved 1937 classic, “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”
Directed by Marc Webb, “Snow White” was released in theaters March 21. However, the film seemed to be doomed from the start. Complaints began when it was announced that Rachel Zegler would play the classic Disney princess.
Zegler, who is part-Colombian, was immediately subject to racist backlashfor being cast as Snow White since the princess’ skin is supposed to be “white as snow.”
Zegler continued to receive backlash during interviews about the film’s production, where she described the original film as “extremely dated” and how the film needs modernization.
"It's no longer 1937,” Zegler said in an interview with Variety. “(Snow White) is not going to be saved by the prince, and she's not going to be dreaming about true love.”
Zegler also received backlash for criticizing conservatives for the outcome of the 2024 election, which she later apologized for.
Zegler is not the only cast member to have controversy. Gal Gadot, who plays the Evil Queen, publicly stated she “stands with Israel” on Instagram following the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel. Zegler has since posted pro-Palestine content both on Instagram and X, fueling rumors of the pair’s feud due to their opposing views.
Amid the ongoing political drama surrounding its release, the film and its directorial choices only worsened its reputation, with many viewers criticizing the creative liberties taken with the film.
The film still had original classics like “Whistle While You Work” and “Heigh-Ho,” but also added several brand new songs composed by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul to enhance the story and modernize the plot.
However, songs like “Waiting On A Wish” and “Princess Problems” ended up doing a disservice to the film and took away from the film’s original story. In the original, Snow White was a soft-spoken, calm and gentle princess. In contrast, Zegler's performances in the new songs often feature powerful ballads, a style that feels completely out of character for the princess.
Many online users also criticized Snow White's costuming and hair styling throughout the film. The princess’ classic blue-and-yellow dress looked more like a tacky Halloween costume than a realistic princess dress.
Perhaps the biggest complaint surrounding the film’s release was its depiction of the titular “seven dwarfs.” The film chose to use CGI to animate the dwarfs, which not only resulted in creepy and off-putting characters but also missed the opportunity to hire actors with dwarfism, a group that rarely gets chances in the film industry.
“Snow White” ultimately underperformed at the box office, with projections showing a $115 million loss for Disney. The box office bomb has raised concerns about the future of other live-action Disney films, prompting the company to pause production on other projects like the live-action adaptation of “Tangled.”
