Disney has ‘zero faith’ in the upcoming ‘woke’ Snow White live-action adaptation starring Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot, insiders have claimed.
The $270million remake of the 1937 classic is set for release next week but has been beset by multiple controversies including dumping the traditional ‘sexist’ romance plot to reimagining the Seven Dwarfs as a diverse group of ‘magical creatures’ of all heights, gender and race.
Amid the shock news the blockbuster won’t have a star-studded premiere like other notable Disney movies, it has now been claimed that movie bosses want to get the limited promo for the controversial film ‘over with’ and have lost faith in the film, per THR.
It has also emerged that advance ticket sales for Snow White didn’t start until Monday, less than two weeks before the film’s release.
Many Disney live-action Disney films including last year’s Christmas Mufasa: The Lion King and 2023’s The Little Mermaid in contrast, had tickets available for pre-sale one month the release date.
A exhibition source alleged to the publication bosses were ‘going through the motions’ with the film, adding: ‘An advance sales cycle of less than two weeks just screams, “We have zero faith in this thing.” And it couldn’t come at a worse point, when the industry is just trying to limp along to May.’
Disney has ‘zero faith’ in the upcoming ‘woke’ Snow White live-action adaptation starring Rachel Zegler (pictured) and Gal Gadot, insiders have claimed
Disney insiders hit back saying they ‘always intended to hold back the film’s big promotional push until the final few weeks, beginning when Zegler and Gadot presented together at the Oscars on March 2.’
DailyMail.com has contacted representatives for Disney for comment.
The film is tracking to make between $50-$56million in its opening weekend – a similar figure to 2015 adaptation Cinderella which opened with $67million.
The Little Mermaid – which cost $240million to make – made $100million in its opening weekend in May 2023.
This comes as it was revealed the Hollywood premiere for Snow White will be ‘scaled back’ amid the backlash against its woke themes and stars.
Variety revealed that Disney would not be giving the movie the same red carpet treatment as other similar projects.
While Zegler, 23, and Gadot, 39, are expected attend a pre-party and screening at Los Angeles’ El Capitan Theatre on March 15, ‘coverage will be limited to photographers and a house crew.’
While most premieres invite dozens of media outlets to cover the event and interview the cast, the studio has decided to buck tradition in this case.
The choice comes amid criticism and fears that the remake prioritized ‘woke’ messaging over authentic storytelling.
Previously, Disney sparked backlash after they announced that ‘magical creatures’ would replace the seven dwarves to ‘avoid reinforcing stereotypes’
The dwarves are now depicted as animated creatures after stars such as Peter Dinklage criticised the ‘f****** backwards story’ last year
It has now been claimed that movie bosses want to get the limited promo for the controversial film ‘over with’ and have lost faith in the film (pictured Zegler and Gadot in 2022)
The Hollywood premiere for Disney’s live-action adaptation of Snow White will be ‘scaled back’ amid the backlash surrounding its stars Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot (seen last week)
Lead star Zegler was seen larking around in Spain ahead of her performance in support of the film
The star cracked up with laughter as she headed out on the promo trail
The Daily Mail also revealed bosses are refusing to hold a star-studded premiere in the UK for the movie over fears of backlash over ‘woking it up’.
What would usually be a big Leicester Square event full of lights and cameras for a £212million live action remake of the 1937 cartoon film, instead there will be no celebration on British soil in an attempt to avoid anti-woke backlash. Instead there will be a ‘handful’ of tightly controlled press events.
An insider told the Mail: ‘Disney are already anticipating an anti-woke backlash against Snow White and have reduced the media schedule to just a handful of tightly controlled press events.
‘That is why they have taken the highly unusual step not to host a London premiere for the film and are minimising the amount of press questions that Rachel Zegler gets.’
Since casting Hispanic actress Zegler as Snow White, Disney fans have highlighted the woke deviations from the classic fairy tale.
Earlier this months, a source told Daily Mail: ‘Disney is already anticipating an anti-woke backlash against Snow White and have reduced the media schedule to just a handful of tightly controlled press events.’
‘That is why they have taken the highly unusual step not to host a London premiere for the film and are minimizing the amount of press questions that Rachel Zegler gets,’ the insider revealed.
Zegler also criticized David Hand’s 1937 original animated film as ‘extremely dated when it comes to the ideas of women being in roles of power and what a woman’s fit for in the world.’
‘The original cartoon came out in 1937, and very evidently so,’ she scoffed to Extra TV in 2022.
‘There’s a big focus on her love story with a guy who literally stalks her. Weird. So we didn’t do that this time.’
‘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!’ she joked, before admitting in a separate interview that she was ‘terrified’ when she went on the beloved Snow White ride at Disney World.
About the 1937 film, she said: ‘I was scared of the original version. I think I watched it once and never picked it up again. I’m being so serious.’
Variety revealed that Disney would not be giving the movie the same red carpet treatment as other similar projects
While Zegler, 23, and Gadot, 39, are expected to be at attendance at a pre-party and screening for Snow White, held at the El Capitan Theatre on March 15, ‘coverage will be limited to photographers and a house crew’ (Zegler and Gadot seen in 2022)
Zegler also told Variety that her version of Snow White would be dreaming about becoming a ‘fearless leader’ rather than ‘dreaming about true love.’
‘For Snow White, there’s a famous scene where she falls into a lake, through a trapdoor-type thing in a forest. And we did it, and I got scuba diving training so that I could spend a long time underwater,’ the Golden Globe winner explained to Cosmo.
‘You learn how to use a breathing tube. I had this guy named Pete, who is ex-Navy, attached to me at all times, tethered to me. And essentially I spent…I want to say a total of 48 hours training. And then shot for two whole days. It was seven hours underwater.’
Sources previously revealed to DailyMail.com that Zegler’s reputation as a ‘loose cannon’ nearly got her axed from playing Snow White.
Zegler’s strong opinions have prompted some haters to vow to boycott the film.
Since her rapid rise to superstardom, after beating 30,000 actresses for the part of María Vasquez in Steven Spielberg’s 2021 adaptation of West Side Story, she’s endured frequent criticism.
There was backlash over her casting as Snow White in Disney’s 2025 live-action remake of the animated classic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and trolling for her radical left wing stance on politics.
Zegler seen last week in Tokyo at an event where she performed the first single from Snow White called Waiting on a Wish
Zegler seen taking a selfie with Sakura Kiryu, who provided the Japanese dubbing voice of Snow White
While reflecting on comments made on social media about her casting as Snow White, Zegler insisted she doesn’t even try to wrap her head why ‘Disney adults’ would have a problem with someone Latina portraying the beloved princess.
Zegler proceeded to reveal that the line describing her character’s ‘skin as white as snow’ will reference ‘another version of Snow White that was told in history,’ in which the character ‘survived a snowstorm that occurred when she was a baby.’
‘The king and queen decided to name her Snow White to remind her of her resilience,’ the Hackensack native noted. ‘One of the core points in our film for any young woman or young person is remembering how strong you actually are.’
The star also admitted that it was ‘sad’ to see so many people rip her apart for teasing that her version of Snow White would not not be saved by a prince.
‘In all honesty, it made me sad that it was taken in such a way, because I believe that women can do anything. But I also believe that they can do everything,’ she explained. ‘It can be very upsetting when things get taken out of context or jokes don’t land.’
Zegler went on to make it clear that the ‘love story is very integral’ and that it wasn’t true that her remake wouldn’t feature any romance.
‘I’ve watched women get torn down my whole life, my whole career,’ she said. ‘We’ll watch it in the election that’s upcoming. We’re gonna witness that for a long time, I fear. Sometimes it can feel like we’re going back; it certainly felt that way when that was happening.’
Although she is tempted to leave social media, at times, she confessed that she doesn’t like to give trolls the ‘satisfaction of knowing they hurt me in the moment.’
‘You give them a lot of power by taking a social media break,’ she pointed out.
Over the years, she has used her platforms to champion causes that are important to her.
During the SAG-AFTRA strike in 2023, she spoke about the possible dangers of AI as she recalled having like ‘465 photos taken of every corner’ of her body for CG stunts.
‘It was f**king dystopian,’ she said. ‘I was really scared of being replaced by an artificial intelligence version of myself that they scanned when I was 18 and then never being able to work on a set again. What was stopping them from using that for the rest of my life?’
She’s also advocated for Palestinians.
‘I can’t watch children die,’ she told the outlet. ‘I don’t think that should be a hot take… We’re nearing one year since the horrendous attacks in Israel on Oct. 7, but I’ve been following this conflict for so many years. Like so many people, I’m so heartbroken by the loss of life that we’re seeing with these insane death tolls coming out of both regions.’
Still, she acknowledges that she doesn’t ‘have the answers.’
‘I don’t think any celebrity making a political statement has the answers. But we have the platform to share a donation link to make sure that these people get the money, the care and the aid that they need that people in power aren’t giving them. If that means that it can fall upon us to be in power in a way that is helpful, then I’m happy to do it,’ she said.
Previously, Disney sparked backlash after they announced that ‘magical creatures’ would replace the seven dwarves to ‘avoid reinforcing stereotypes’
Previously, Disney sparked backlash after they announced that ‘magical creatures’ would replace the seven dwarves to ‘avoid reinforcing stereotypes’ with Game of Thrones actor Peter Dinklage criticized the ‘f****** backwards story’ last year.
‘I was a little taken aback when they [Disney] were very proud to cast a Latina actress as Snow White, but you’re still telling the story of Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs,’ he told Mark Maron’s WTF podcast.
‘It makes no sense to me. You’re progressive in one way and you’re still making that f***ing backwards story about seven dwarfs living in a cave together, what the f*** are you doing, man? Have I done nothing to advance the cause from my soapbox? I guess I’m not loud enough.’
Dinklage’s concerns were shared by some charities, including the Restricted Growth Association in the UK.
‘I very much stand with Peter Dinklage on the disappointment and irritation towards Disney for the remake of Snow White,’ Rhonda Cutmore, a member of the association, told The Telegraph. ‘
The original story has also been criticized as being ableist for portraying the dwarfs with lesser intelligence and Snow White seeing them as children
Dwarfism writer Steph Robson said she hoped film producers make an effort to avoid stereotypes in its retelling of the classic movie.
‘It is my hope that the latest live action remake, and Disney, will, at the very least go some way to redress the decades of the one-dimensional stereotypes that our disability continues to experience, especially within arts and cultural settings,’ she told the outlet.
The story has also been criticized as being ableist for portraying the dwarfs with lesser intelligence and Snow White seeing them as children.
Disney has said it’s ‘taking a different approach’ with Snow White’s seven companions, after Game Of Thrones actor Peter slammed the studio for remaking the ‘backward’ film that reinforces stereotypes.
In a statement last year, the company said it had been consulting with members of the dwarfism community throughout the early stages of production.
‘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,’ a spokesperson said.
‘We look forward to sharing more as the film heads into production after a lengthy development period.’
In December last year, sources close to the production said Snow White’s seven ‘dwarfs’ were not going to be fully computer generated, and wouldn’t be dwarfs at all.
Instead, she would be befriended by magical, forest-dwelling creatures.
