It is fair to say that Disney’s live-action Snow White adaption hasn’t exactly had an easy ride. It all started when they decided dwarves weren’t politically correct anymore, so they changed them to non-denominatory (and probably non-binary) “magical creatures” before changing their minds following the general level of laughter at what they unveiled.
However the big backlash was focused on the lead, Rachel Zegler. In that Gen-Z way, she just couldn’t help but say the wrong thing.
First of all, way back at D23 – 22 she laid into the Waly Disney classic original, staying that Prince Charming “…literally stalks…” Snow White. She then became a gif when she declared, with standard Gen-Z nightmare inflection, that it was all just weird.
Then she stated to another outlet that the original was “extremely dated”.
Who the hell was this young whippersnapper, thought fans, to opine on such a classic from their narrow, year zero point of view. The movie was clearly set up for something of a rough ride. So now that time has passed and the dust might have settled a bit, has Zegler changed her tone in a recent interview with Variety? What do you think?
“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.
I would never want to box someone in and say, ‘If you want love, then you can’t work.’ Or ‘If you want to work, then you can’t have a family.’ It’s not true. It’s never been true. It can be very upsetting when things get taken out of context or jokes don’t land.
The love story is very integral. A lot of people wrote that we weren’t doing [that storyline] anymore – we were always doing that; it just wasn’t what we were talking about on that day. I’ve watched women get torn down my whole life, my whole career.
Right. So it was all about her gender? Best stop there, Rachel, you don’t want to get yourself in any more trouble and… oh no! She’s off again…
“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.”
For God’s sake! Remember her date of birth and somebody stop her from talking!
The rumors are that Snow White had a budget of over $200 million, and the reshoots and associated costs and delays have added another $100 million to that figure. That is a whole other 1.25 The Rock on top!
This just feels like Disney soiling its own nest once again. We will find out on March 21st, 2025 where, if it fails, no doubt it will be our fault.