Disney’s newest live-action film, Snow White, will be released on March 20th, and with that, many controversies need to be addressed.
Firstly, everybody was confused as to why the title didn’t include ‘And the Seven Dwarfs’ in it, but Disney explained that they were taking a different approach in the movie to avoid stereotypes about dwarfism, which concerned some fans.
After their statement, the company decided to use CGI to portray the seven dwarfs, instead of hiring real people who have dwarfism. This happened especially because of a discussion between Disney and the actor Peter Dinklage. He stated that actors with that condition only get roles where they portray magical beings and not real people.
That being said, Disney decided that the dwarfs from Snow White would actually be represented as magical creatures from the forest, and the decision to use CGI was made. Even so, their attempt to do something different got some internet users furious with their approach.
Another thing that bothered some old fans was Disney’s actress choice for portraying the beloved princess. West Side Story star, Rachel Zegler, was the chosen one to bring the animation to life, but her casting didn’t make people react the way they expected.
Unfortunately, Zegler’s incredible singing and acting abilities couldn’t please people. Some rude comments claimed that she wasn’t pale or beautiful enough to portray a character that is described as the most beautiful girl in the kingdom, with skin so white that it looks like snow.
Also, Rachel’s comments about the original piece and her relationship with it didn’t quite cooperate with the movie’s marketing. While speaking to Entertainment Weekly in September 2022, Zegler said she was “scared of the original version,” and “watched it once and never picked it up again.”
In a Variety interview, also in 2022, she talked about the changes made to the original movie, emphasizing that “it’s no longer 1937” and that Snow White was “not going to be saved by the prince. And she’s not going to be dreaming about true love. She’s dreaming about becoming the leader she knows she can be.”
Probably, this was one of the things that most bothered Disney fans. Some agree that the film needs to be adapted for today’s kids, but mostly, to please the public that grew up with 1937’s Snow White. But still, there’s the question: “Why make a live-action version of a movie that looks exactly like the original animated piece?”.
However, the criticism didn’t stop her! In Rachel’s most recent appearance, in Tokyo, for Snow White’s press tour, she absolutely honored the beloved princess with her outfit. And, despite everything that became controversial, some people actually started liking seeing her as Snow White.
ZEgLER AND GADOT’S CONTROVERSY
Entering into another topic, Gal Gadot was chosen to portray the Evil Queen, an iconic character that says one of the most famous Disney quotes: “Magic mirror on the wall, who is the fairest one of all?”
No one really complained about the choice, considering the physical aspects of the character and the actress. Her characterization was done nicely, and old fans were actually happy that Gal Gadot looks a lot like the Evil Queen.
The bigger problem in her scenario is that, even though she starred in many famous movies, the acting skills of our Wonder Woman don’t exactly please everybody.
In August 2024, Disney released the awaited Snow White trailer, and it was actually better than everyone was expecting, but Gal Gadot’s scenes were something that has been brought to the public’s attention.
Some users even took those scenes and turned them into memes, by commenting that her acting is really “stiff” and emotionless, which is not really Disney’s way of making movies.
Even so, Gal Gadot has way bigger problems to solve than internet users talking about her acting skills while she’s still being cast in many pieces. One of them is her opinions on the Israel and Palestine war.
She used to serve in the Israel Defense Forces and has been publicly pro-Israel this whole time, and had to disable comments on Instagram and X (Twitter) after she received backlash with some users accusing her of “ethnic cleansing”.
In the same path, Rachel Zegler, who describes herself as “pro-Palestine,” has been vocal about her opinions. Following the release of the Snow White trailer, she expressed her gratitude to her followers in a post on X, saying, “always remember, free Palestine.”
Gal Gadot and Rachel Zegler presented the last Academy Awards together, where they presented the Oscars for Best Visual Effects. Both appeared at Snow White’s premiere, which took place at March 15th, saturday, and allowed close attetion to their interactions. As a Variety article recently described, they posed and “smiled dutifully”.
All things considered, Disney’s live-action adaptation of Snow White has sparked significant controversy due to its various creative decisions and the public’s reaction to everything. Their effort to update a classic story highlights important conversations about representation, beauty standards, and changing narratives, making the new movie a key topic in today’s film discussions.
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The article above was edited by Isabelle Bignardi.
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