The ‘woke’ Snow White live action adaptation could be set to flop at cinemas in its opening weekend, new data has indicated.
The $270million remake of the 1937 classic will debut next week, but has been beset by multiple controversies including lead star Rachel Zegler panning the original film for its ‘sexist’ traditional romance plot to reimagining the Seven Dwarfs as a diverse group of ‘magical creatures’ of all heights, gender and race.
Amid claims Disney ‘doesn’t know what to do’ with Zegler, 23, the film is currently tracking to take in just $50million in its opening weekend in the US and Canada, according to analysis of pre-release audience surveys obtained by the LA Times.
Snow White’s muted predicted opening weekend total is significantly lower than past live-action blockbusters – with 2019’s Lion King scoring a $191.8million domestic opening, 2023’s The Little Mermaid raking in $95.6 million, 2017’s Beauty and the Beast taking in $174.8 million and 2019’s Aladdin opening with $91.5 million.
Shawn Robbins, director of analytics at movie ticket seller Fandango and founder of tracking site Box Office Theory says the unimpressive predicted opening could be down to the age of the film’s intellectual property.
While previous remakes of films originally released in the 80s and 90s appealed to millennials and Gen X who have children, Robbins says Snow White may not be as recognizable a figure for younger audiences.
The ‘woke’ Snow White live action adaptation could be set to flop at cinemas in its opening weekend, new data has indicated – pictured Rachel Zegler in the film
2015’s Cinderella opened with $67million, a similar figure to Snow White’s projection.
Robbins said: ‘That’s probably going to play into the generational appeal that is usually a factor for other remakes on the Disney side’ adding ‘there’s no question that some of the other narratives that have developed around Snow White over the last year or so aren’t helping matters.’
DailyMail.com has contacted representatives for Disney for comment.
This comes after an insider revealed Zegler is ‘out of control’ and causing major headaches for Disney ahead of the movie’s release, an insider has revealed.
While Zegler was put front-and-centre of the film’s European ‘premiere’, the leading lady wasn’t given the chance to speak to any global press – because they weren’t invited to the secret event.
She jetted off to a remote castle in Segovia, Spain, to perform for around 100 select ‘VIPs’ which included influencers and families, though the event raised eyebrows as she was the only star in attendance, with not even Gal Gadot, who plays the Evil Queen, present.
Disney are reportedly treading carefully with Zegler after she has made a series of bold comments panning the original 1937 classic for its ‘sexist’ traditional romance plot and ‘dated’ love story.
‘Disney’s lead actress is out of control,’ a source told Page Six. ‘They don’t know what to do.
Previously, Disney sparked backlash after they announced that ‘magical creatures’ would replace the seven dwarves to ‘avoid reinforcing stereotypes
Amid claims Disney ‘doesn’t know what to do’ with Zegler, 23 , the film is currently tracking to take in just $50million in its opening weekend in the US and Canada
2019’s Lion King scored a $191.8million domestic opening
2023’s The Little Mermaid raked in $95.6 million – it cost $240million to make
‘She’s an outspoken 20-something and Disney chiefs have called her directly and asked her to tone down her posts. They’ve called her management, but she won’t listen.
‘It’s been this way the entire way through filming. But it’s the tying of her politics to Snow White that is upsetting.’
Wednesday’s European event was carefully not referred to as a premiere after Disney scaled back the glitzy global premieres in favour of ‘tightly controlled’ press events following the scandals and PR nightmares surrounding the film.
Rather than the usual list of major news outlets flocking to the event, local Spanish influencers and families from the small city of Segovia, which boasts a population of just 51,000, were among the chosen ‘VIPs’ in attendance.
Zegler’s co-star Gadot was also absent, with only director Marc Webb accompanying Zegler to the event.
The scaled-back European event replaced the glitzy London premiere that had been expected for the high-budget release. An LA event is also said to have been scaled back.
Earlier this month, 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.
It was further alleged Disney has ‘zero faith’ in the film.
Amid the news the blockbuster won’t have a star-studded premiere like most 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.’
Variety revealed that Disney would not be giving the movie the same red carpet treatment as other similar projects
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.’
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.
Leave a Reply