| Director: | Marc Webb |
| Cinematography: | Mandy Walker |
| Editing: | Mark Sanger |
| Distributor: | Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Budget: | $269.4 million[1] |
Disney's Snow White, or simply Snow White, is an upcoming American musical fantasy film directed by Marc Webb from a screenplay by Greta Gerwig and Erin Cressida Wilson. Produced by Walt Disney Pictures and Marc Platt Productions, it is a live-action reimagining[2]
Plans for a remake of 1937's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs were confirmed in October 2016, with Wilson announced as a screenwriter. Webb entered talks to direct the film in May 2019 and was announced as director in September 2019. Filming took place primarily in London, England from March to July 2022, with additional filming and pick-ups taking place in June 2024. The film elicited pre-release controversies, with criticism levied against the colour-blind casting, story changes, Zegler's public disapproval of the original film, and reimagining of the Seven Dwarfs.
Snow White is scheduled to be released in theaters in the United States by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures on March 21, 2025.
On October 31, 2016, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Walt Disney Pictures was developing a live-action remake of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, with Erin Cressida Wilson being in talks to write the screenplay.[6] On May 30, 2019, it was reported that Marc Webb was in talks to direct the film.[7] In November 2021, Greta Gerwig was reported to be co-writing the screenplay.[8] Gurinder Chadha was also heavily considered for the job.[9]
In June 2021, Rachel Zegler was cast in the titular role,[10] and in November, Gal Gadot was cast as the Evil Queen.[11] On December 7, 2021, during an interview with Extra, Zegler revealed that Snow White would be a lot "stronger" than the original.[12] A new casting search was announced for a young actress to star as a younger version of Snow White in the live-action remake, and Emilia Faucher was cast.[13] [14] On January 12, 2022, it was announced that Andrew Burnap was cast as a new character named Jonathan in the lead male role,[15] replacing the character of The Prince.[16] At the 2022 Denver Fan Expo, Martin Klebba revealed that he would be portraying Grumpy in the film; Klebba previously played similar dwarf roles in prior productions based on the "Snow White" fairy tale: in the 2001 made-for-television film as Friday, and in the 2012 fantasy comedy Mirror Mirror as Butcher.[17] Colin Michael Carmichael appears in the film.[18]
The casting of the Latina Zegler as Snow White, a character described in the original material as having skin "as white as snow",[19] attracted some controversy.[20] While appearing on with Andrew Garfield, Zegler responded to the Snow White casting backlash with comments such as:
In August 2023, it was revealed that another Latina actress by the name of Renata Vaca was one of two finalists in the casting process for the role of Snow White, the other being Zegler who ultimately won the role. Vaca, a Mexican national, stated that the casting call for the role of Snow White was "open to all ethnic groups", and that the first phase of auditioning consisted of singing a Disney Princess song. Vaca went on to be cast in the American horror sequel Saw X.[21] In October 2024, Zegler revealed that in the movie the character would be given the name Snow White after she and her parents survived a snowstorm to remind her of her resilience, which Zegler claims was a plot-line used in another version of the fairy tale, though no source was given.[22]
In January 2022, during an interview on Marc Maron's WTF podcast, actor Peter Dinklage, who has a form of dwarfism and has played dwarfish characters in his career, commented on the upcoming live-action Snow White remake, dismissing it as a "backward story".[23] In response to Dinklage's comments, Disney stated that "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."[24] [25] Numerous other actors with dwarfism responded negatively to Dinklage's comments, feeling he was unduly speaking on their behalf and costing them roles.[26]
In July 2023, footage of the production from Berkshire revealed that the depiction of the Seven Dwarfs had been reimagined for the film, consisting of only one actor with dwarfism along with six other non-dwarf actors of varying ethnicity, six males and one female portraying the associated set of seven individuals, who were originally all portrayed as supernatural beings from German folklore, not actual human beings.[27] After initially denying reports that these images depicted the actual film production, Disney later confirmed that they did indeed depict the production, with stand-in actors substituting for the leads (the already confirmed actor Martin Klebba not appearing in said footage).[28] [29] The decision to reimagine the characters as such was criticised by mainstream and social media sources as being overly politically correct, as well as potentially taking away acting opportunities from the dwarfism community.[30] Jackass actor Jason "Wee Man" Acuña criticised Disney for not casting dwarf actors and expressed disappointment about the changes.[31] Acuña said "You're replacing jobs that people could have as little people. It's for dwarfs. Why are you hiring 'Snow White and the seven average people'?"[32] Wrestler and actor Dylan Postl also disagreed with Dinklage's view and in an interview with Piers Morgan, he echoed Acuña's sentiments and defended the portrayal of the dwarf characters in the animated film.[33] [34]
In October 2023, coinciding with an announcement of the film's delay, Disney unveiled a first-look image for the movie, which included Zegler portraying Snow White, alongside the Seven Dwarfs, all of which are CGI characters made to look similar to their appearances in the 1937 film.
Filming for Snow White was originally set to begin in March 2020 in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Los Angeles, California, but it was delayed to July 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[35] [36] [37] In August 2021, it was announced that filming would take place in the United Kingdom[38] from March to July 2022.[39] Principal photography began on March 7, 2022.[40] A fire damaged the production set on March 15 at Pinewood Studios; the stage was under construction when a tree reportedly caught on fire, leading to a huge blaze.[41] A source from Disney confirmed that "no filming was underway".[42] The shooting schedule was also reconfigured for Zegler to travel to Los Angeles to present at the 94th Academy Awards ceremony on March 27, in support of her West Side Story colleagues.[43] While Zegler was attending the ceremony, Gadot began filming her scenes.[44] Unlike in the original, her character sings and dances in the film.[45] On April 22, Gadot confirmed that she had completed filming her scenes,[46] much later adding that she enjoyed playing the role of the first Disney villain and that she was able to make a more dramatic role by changing her voice due to the film being a musical.[47] [48] On July 13, Zegler revealed that filming had wrapped.[49] [50] Additional filming took place in June 2024.[51] [52] [53]
Moving Picture Company provided the visual effects.[54]
Songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, who previously wrote the lyrics for two new songs for Disney's 2019 remake of Aladdin, wrote new songs for the film, including a new "I Want" song for Snow White, titled "Waiting on a Wish."[55] The film is expected to also feature songs from the original film by Frank Churchill and Larry Morey, including "Heigh-Ho" and "Whistle While You Work", the latter of which was confirmed by Zegler.
On September 9, 2022, during Disney's 2022 D23 Expo presentation, a 30-second first-look teaser of the film as well as first-look images were previewed.There were quick flashes of several major settings, including Snow White's cottage in the woods, the intricately designed interior of the Queen's castle, and the moss-covered forest. There were also short glimpses of Gadot as the Evil Queen questioning her magic mirror, Zegler as Snow White, and Snow White's hand falling with the poisoned apple toppling along with her.[56] Gadot said about her role that playing the Evil Queen was "very different than what [she] had done before. [She is] used to playing the other end of where the heart should be", but she found it very "delightful" to "get under her skin".[57] [58] The title logo of the film was also revealed.[59] In an interview with Vanity Fair, Zegler criticized the "jokes" that were being made about the film's modern updates, including her casting in the role of Snow White as a Latina, and addressed the film's approach, saying:
Zegler later said of the changes from the original film:
On October 27, 2023, Disney released the official first image of the film with Zegler as Snow White as well as Bashful, Doc, Dopey, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy, and Sneezy.[60] [61] Zegler confirmed that there is a lot of CGI in the film, which made her feel "nervous".[62] Footage of Gadot as the Evil Queen was shown at the 2024 CinemaCon.[63] Disney presented new footage and a behind-the-scenes look at the film during the 2024 CineEurope.[64] [65] The 2024 D23 Expo presented a sneak preview of the film with a clip of the musical number "Whistle While You Work" along with the first trailer.[66] The first full trailer for the film debuted at D23 Brazil in November 2024 and was attached to select theatrical screenings of Universal Pictures' Wicked and was officially released online on December 3, 2024.[67] [68]
During the 2022 D23 Expo Presentation, it was announced that Snow White would be released in 2024.[69] [70] On September 15, 2022, the film was announced to have a release date of March 22, 2024.[71] However, in October 2023, the film was delayed a year to March 21, 2025, with Disney claiming it was due to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike.[72]
The teaser trailer for Snow White was released onto YouTube in August 2024 and became the most disliked teaser for a film trailer on the platform, garnering nearly one million dislikes as opposed to over 68,000 likes within a span of three weeks.[73] [74] [75]
Zegler attracted criticism over statements expressing disapproval of the original film, the Prince, and Snow White's character.[76] [77] In response to her comments, many rebuked her for making Snow White "more feminist",[78] while others criticised her for misinterpreting feminism, with accusations of promoting the girlboss archetype or maligning women that seek traditional feminine roles or are uninterested in power or leadership. Ashten Stein, a brand strategist, felt that Zegler's statements made it appear that she had not received media training for marketing the film.[79] [80]
David Hand, whose father of the same name co-directed the original animated film, criticised the remake, describing it as "insulting" and suggesting that his father and Walt Disney would be "turning in their graves".[81] This controversy would lead to conservative media organization The Daily Wire announcing on October 16, 2023 (the day of Disney's 100th anniversary) the launch of the streaming service Bentkey and the upcoming release of their own live-action adaptation of the original fairy tale, titled Snow White and the Evil Queen, set for release in 2025 in an effort to compete with Disney's version.[82]
The release of the film's teaser trailer provoked calls to boycott the film from both sides of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict due to Gadot and Zegler's opposing stances on the conflict, with Gadot supporting Israel and Zegler supporting Palestine.[83] [84] [85] [86] Pro-Palestinian viewers criticized Gadot's inclusion in the film as inappropriate, while pro-Israel viewers criticized her casting in an "evil" role as offensive.[87] Alia Malak of the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel said, "By choosing to directly represent genocidal Israel, Gal Gadot's films are boycottable".
Following the release of the trailer, Zegler tweeted, "and always remember, free palestine". Zegler's statement was praised by pro-Palestinian activists[88] and criticized by others as anti-Israel and insensitive to Gadot.[89] Ofir Akunis, Israel's consul general in New York, criticized Zegler and called for people to buy tickets to Gadot's next film.[90]
In October 2024, Zegler responded to the criticism during an interview, saying, "I can't watch children die. I don't think that should be a hot take. I'm only responsible for what I feel. And then I'm also responsible for how I act upon it. 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." She added that she would continue to support Palestine on social media.
In November 2024, another call to boycott the film was made by MAGA supporters after Zegler criticized in an Instagram story the re-election of former U.S. president Donald Trump following the 2024 United States presidential election. Zegler later issued a public apology in response, saying that she meant no harm with her message while offering a call for peace: "I let my emotions get the best of me. Hatred and anger have caused us to move further and further away from peace and understanding, and I am sorry I contributed to the negative discourse. This week has been emotional for so many of us, but I firmly believe that everyone has the right to their opinion, even when it differs from my own. I am committed to contributing positively towards a better tomorrow."[91] [92]