"Snow White" Hollywood Premiere Scaled Back as Controversies Continue to Surround the Film
The live-action remake stars Rachel Zegler as the titular character.
Disney is scaling back their Snow White premiere amid continued backlash of the live-action remake.
What’s Happening:
- Variety reports that Disney March 15th Hollywood premiere of Snow White won’t be the large-scale events that fans have come to expect from the media company.
- While the El Capitan Theatre hosted event will include a pre-party, screenings, and appearances by stars Rachel Zeglar and Gal Gadot, the frenzy of media outlets usually responsible for cast and creative interviews along the red carpet will be absent.
- Coverage will be limited to photographers and a house crew.
- This comes as the film continues to draw criticism as it heads towards its March 21st release.
- Controversy is not new for the Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs remake.
- When Rachel Zegler was initially announced as the titular role, the multi-talented actress was subjected to an onslaught of racism about her Latinx heritage.
- Some Disney fans were also unhappy about her criticism of the 1937 film, calling it “dated" for its depiction of Snow White and the prince’s less than consensual dynamic.
- She shared at 2022’s D23, “She’s not going to be saved by the prince. She’s not going to be dreaming about true love. She’s dreaming about becoming the leader she knows she can be."
- Additionally, the film was meant to ditch the iconic seven dwarfs. When photos on set originally leaked, the group was instead replaced with magical creatures that varied in gender, height, and race.
- After additional backlash from this ginormous change prompted reshoots, which set the film back an entire year. However, when it was revealed that these new characters were replaced with CGI dwarfs, many were uncomfortable with the lack of representation of little people within the film.
- This includes actor Peter Dinklage. During an appearance on the WTF With Marc Maron podcast in January of 2024, he stated “They were very proud to cast a Latino actress as Snow White, but you’re still telling the story of ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.’ Take a step back and look at what you’re doing there."
- Disney was quick to respond to his remarks, sharing they were “taking a different approach with these seven characters and have been consulting with members of the dwarfism community" on Good Morning America.
- In addition to the public discourse surrounding the film, Snow White’s starring actresses are said to have a fairly strained relationship.
- Both Zegler and Gadot have been outspoken about the conflict in Gaza, but from very different angles.
- Zegler also received backlash after a controversial tweet during the 2024 Presidential election, which she later apologized for.
- The pair have been making separate promotional appearances for the film, minus a joint award presentation at this year’s Oscars.
- Snow White hits theaters on March 21st.
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