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The film was doomed from the moment its lead, Rachel Zegler, openly criticized the 1937 original. “It’s no longer 1937,” Zegler said, taking a clear swipe at the classic tale that launched Disney’s animation empire. Co-star Gal Gadot jumped in to double down: “She’s not gonna be saved by the prince.”
Zegler continued, “She’s not gonna be saved by the prince and she’s not gonna be dreaming about ‘true love,’ she’s dreaming about becoming the leader she knows she can be.”
Critics quickly labeled the comments arrogant and out-of-touch, as fans began to question why Disney would remake a classic only to trash its core themes. But the problems didn’t end there.
The backlash only grew after it was revealed that Disney had scrapped the seven dwarves, calling their inclusion “ableist.” Instead, the company initially rolled out a confusing mix of characters of various sizes and races, triggering online outrage. After facing major pushback, Disney awkwardly reversed course, but by then, the damage was done.
To make matters worse, the already-tense promotion campaign took a political turn. Gal Gadot, an Israeli actress and former IDF soldier, was caught in an uncomfortable clash with her co-star. On the same day the film’s trailer dropped in December, Zegler posted a “Free Palestine” message, sparking internal turmoil.
Insiders say the tension between Zegler and Gadot spilled over into the press tour, only adding to the film’s negative buzz. According to box office analyst Valiant Renegade, Zegler’s public comments likely doomed the film before it even hit theaters. “Zegler’s comments had doomed the movie before it ever had a chance to take root and likely had Disney executives fuming,” he said.
It’s no secret that Disney has had a rough run lately, with major flops like “Lightyear” and “Elemental” bruising the studio’s reputation. But “Snow White” may turn out to be its biggest black eye yet.
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Valiant Renegade didn’t mince words about the downward trend. “Here’s the bottom-line problem folks; the ‘Barbie’ movie from Mattel and Warner Brothers right now is doing numbers that the ‘Little Mermaid’ should have done several months ago but it didn’t. It’s probably gonna finish with about three times as much box office as the ‘Little Mermaid’ did and that’s a shame for Disney. I don’t think ‘Snow White’ is going to be any better,” he said.
Even “The Little Mermaid,” which failed to make a real profit, more than doubled “Snow White’s” opening with a $95 million debut. Current forecasts show that Snow White’s entire box office run may not even touch that figure—making it one of the worst financial disasters Disney has ever seen.
In the end, it seems that trying to modernize fairy tales by stripping them of their soul and legacy isn’t resonating with audiences. Disney bet big—and this time, it lost.
