Summary
- Disney’s live-action Snow White remake is highly anticipated and has gained attention and controversy due to its delayed release date and casting choices.
- The film, directed by Marc Webb and written by Greta Gerwig, aims to pay tribute to the original while making notable alterations, including a more proactive and independent Snow White.
- The movie will still be a musical, featuring both classic songs from the original film and new songs created by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. A trailer for the film is expected to be released in mid to late 2024.
Disney is hard at work on a live-action Snow White remake following the lead of previous revamps like Beauty and the Beast and Aladdin. In some ways, it is a bit surprising that Disney waited as long as it has to do a remake of Snow White. After all, the original 1937 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was Disney’s very first animated feature, and thus it casts a long shadow over the company’s output ever since. Then again, perhaps Snow White’s status as the textbook Disney Princess fairytale is why Disney has been hesitant to bring it to live-action.
The original Snow White is a landmark entry in the world of animated movies and is perhaps Disney’s signature production. So many aspects of Snow White influenced Disney movies that followed, so living up to its legacy will be challenging. Yet, that is exactly what today’s Disney team will now attempt to do with its upcoming live-action Disney’s Snow White, a project that already looks set to both pay tribute to the classic tale while also making notable alterations. Like almost every adaptation of an animated classic, the upcoming live-action Snow White remake from Disney has already gained a lot of attention and a fair share of controversy.
The Latest Live-Action Snow White News
The most recent news on Disney’s Snow White came on October 29, 2023. It was confirmed by Disney that the live-action Snow White remake has been delayed. The Rachel Zegler Snow White movie had originally been pegged for a 2024 release the premiere has now been set for March 21, 2025, just one day shy of a year later (via THR). It’s expected that the delay is in part due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, though due to recent controversy, there’s also suspicion that the Snow White delay could be to fix CGI issues with the seven dwarves.
The Live-Action Snow White Is Confirmed
The live-action Snow White is confirmed, with Disney announcing the project in 2019 (via THR). Stepping into the director’s chair for Disney’s live-action Snow White remake is Marc Webb, known for the Amazing Spider-Man movies starring Andrew Garfield. Penning the script is Greta Gerwig, who also co-wrote Margot Robbie’s upcoming Barbie movie, along with Erin Cressida Wilson, who wrote the Julianne Moore thriller Chloe. Filming wrapped in July 2022 (via HITC) just before Rachel Zegler began filming Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Post-production on the movie appears to be ongoing, however.
Live-Action Snow White Release Date
The release date for Disney’s Snow White is March 21, 2025. The Rachel Zegler Snow White remake had originally been set for a March 22, 2024 release, but this was delayed in late 2023 due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strikes.
Disney’s Live-Action Snow White Cast
Disney’s live-action Snow White remake cast hasn’t been fully announced, but key roles were, including the lead. Rachel Zegler, who played Maria in Steven Spielberg’s remake of West Side Story, will star as Snow White. Zegler has admitted she was initially terrified to take on the role of playing Disney’s first animated princess in live-action because “the blueprint of all Disney’s princesses comes from 1937’s Snow White,” but she took on the role despite the pressure.
While Zegler is still a rising name, adding some bigger star power to the Snow White cast is Gal Gadot, who is set to play the dastardly villain the Evil Queen, also commonly referred to as the Wicked Queen. Playing a villain inspired by an animated character, and being a villain, has allowed Gadot to play around with her acting style more than usual. Gadot has even explained in interviews that she’s changed her voice for the role.
Broadway star Andrew Burnap will portray a new love interest character named Jonathan, who is described as Robin Hood-esque. Finally, Martin Klebba —a veteran of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise — will play Grumpy.
Martin Klebba has actually appeared in multiple Snow White adaptations in the past. He appeared in 2012’s Mirror, Mirror, and 2001’s Snow White: The Fairest Of Them All. Though he was announced as cast as Grumpy, following Peter Dinklage’s criticism of Snow White’s treatment of the seven dwarves being backward in the many adaptations that came before, Klebba is now also listed as a technical advisor for the movie instead of an actor. Klebba, however, confirmed his casting himself at Denver Expo in 2022 and had already finished filming his scenes at the time.
Rachel Zegler Snow White Casting Controversy Explained
Disney had remained relatively quiet about progress on the live-action Snow White. Live-action Snow White remake news surrounds a handful of images making their way around the internet. Images that were taken by press during the filming of the movie have kicked off some live-action Snow White casting controversy as many of those who have seen the images were less than happy. The pictures, which featured what looked like Snow White and the seven dwarfs, were not what people expected. Disney has been quick to point out that they are not official pictures from the movie.
The images actually featured Rachel Zegler’s stand-in as Snow White and seven actors of various genders and ethnic backgrounds as Snow White’s seven dwarfs. The live-action Snow White casting backlash is out in full force as Disney is being criticized for not all seven dwarfs being played by dwarf actors as well as Zegler, who is of Colombian descent, being cast as Snow White.
The comments aimed at Zegler typically regard her not having “skin white as snow.” Zegler has responded to those criticisms by encouraging her fans not to tag her on social media when defending her casting against the racist backlash. She’s likely been inundated with comments from fans and critics alike since being cast in the role. Instead, she’s shared images of herself in princess costumes as a child, including Snow White, telling those that come across the posts, “I hope every child knows they can be a princess, no matter what.”
Zegler has found herself in the middle of Snow White live-action casting controversy again because the internet is divided on whether Zegler is the right choice for the role of Snow White. Zegler has not been shy about explaining that the live-action Snow White movie is modernizing the tale of the princess, making her a more proactive character, which sounds like a good thing. Some, however, have concerns.
At D23 in September 2022, Zegler explained to the press that she believed the live-action movie brought Snow White as a character out of the conventions of the past to become a woman that could be a leader and didn’t need a prince to save her. Her comment made to Variety stated “I just mean that it’s no longer 1937. We absolutely wrote a Snow White that … she’s not going to be saved by the prince, and she’s not going to be dreaming about true love.” The live-action Snow White actress then went on to elaborate on her take on the character “She’s going to be dreaming about becoming the leader she knows she can be and that her late father told her that she could be if she was fearless, fair, brave and true.”
For some fans, the implication is that Snow White didn’t have value as a Disney Princess without becoming a leader, or that dreaming of true love isn’t something a young woman should do, and they’ve taken issue with that. There are multiple sides to Disney Princesses, especially in the stories produced since the 2000s that have reflected that well, and there is a question of why Show White has to be a dreamer or a leader and cannot be both. It is, of course, possible for Snow White to have a love story and be a leader as well in the larger narrative.
Of course, Zegler’s comments are being taken out of context from interviews as a whole. The internet has been quick to pick apart her jokes about potentially eliminating the prince from Snow White’s story completely. While she made the comment in jest to Entertainment Weekly at D23, Zegler’s point was that the love story wasn’t the main focus of the movie. Instead, Snow White’s growth will be the focus.
Some have also taken issue with Zegler seemingly not being a fan of the movie. Though Zegler has previously shared images of herself on social media in a Show White costume as a child, she’s also admitted that she didn’t rewatch the movie numerous times. The idea has been floated on platforms like X (formerly Twitter) that a fan of Snow White should have been cast instead, but Zegler has never actually said she wasn’t a fan of the princess or the movie. Instead, she made it clear in previous interviews that she was terrified of the Evil Queen when she was a little girl, which is completely understandable.
Snow White Story: How The Live-Action Remake Will Update Disney’s Classic
In the original story of Snow White, the princess is targeted by her stepmother because of her vanity. Snow White is beloved and termed “the fairest of them all” by a magic mirror. The Evil Queen sends a huntsman after Snow White, who ends up escaping into the woods and living with seven dwarfs who mine gemstones. When the queen eventually tracks her down, a poisoned apple sends Snow White into an enchanted sleep that can only be awakened by true love’s kiss. Much of that story is expected to make it into the Snow White live-action remake, but there will be some changes to Snow White.
As one might expect, the Rachel Zegler Snow White story will be made much more in line with modern sensibilities for Disney’s live-action remake. Snow White will no longer be a helpless damsel in distress needing to be saved by a handsome prince’s kiss. In fact, she will go to battle alongside Jonathan, her love interest for the movie. There is not much currently revealed about the story, but many of its more iconic Disney princess movie aspects are expected to remain largely the same. However, following the criticism of past portrayals of dwarfism in Snow White adaptations by Peter Dinklage, Disney said the seven dwarfs will be getting an overhaul.
The Live-Action Snow White Is Still A Musical
Because the live-action Snow White adaptation is based on the original Disney animated movie, it will also be a musical. The original film features Snow White’s standouts “Whistle While You Work” and “Someday My Prince Will Come.” The music of the original movie is expected to be featured in the new film as well, but there will also be new songs created just for the live-action adaptation. Benj Pasek and Justin Paul worked on music for the movie. Their previous credits include Dear Evan Hansen, The Greatest Showman, La La Land, and Spirited.
There’s No Live-Action Snow White Trailer Yet
Though brief footage was shared at D23, fans are a long way off from getting to see a trailer for the movie. It’s likely a teaser will drop for the movie in about the same time frame that Disney utilized to tease their The Little Mermaid adaptation. A teaser trailer for the movie debuted eight months before the theatrical release date. That means mid to late 2024 is a good bet for a Snow White trailer.
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