The ‘Snow White’ Situation Somehow Gets Messier
Just when it seemed like the release of Disney’s Snow White could not get any messier, producer Marc Platt’s son has unleashed a torrent of criticism on star Rachel Zegler.
To understand how we got here, we have to go back to when Snow White was announced in 2022. Almost immediately, Zegler made it clear that she was not a fan of certain aspects of the original film.
At the 2022 D23 Expo, Zegler pointed out that Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs was “very evidently” a product of the 1930s.
Photo: D23
“There’s a big focus on her love story with a guy who literally stalks her,” she commented, calling the dynamic “weird” and emphasizing that the new Snow White is “really not about the love story at all.” She considered this change a welcome improvement.
Later, in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Zegler described the original Snow White as “extremely dated” in its portrayal of women, particularly regarding their roles in power and societal expectations.
Zegler’s comments not only drew the ire of social conservatives but, perhaps even more importantly, Disney’s die-hard fans who revere Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
Photo: Disney
As we previously laid out, Disney’s headaches were only beginning.
Zegler and Disney’s Relationship Frayed
The trouble between the studio and Zegler came to a crescendo last year. First, the actress added “free Palestine” at the end of her social media post promoting Snow White. Then, Zegler took to Instagram in the aftermath of the 2024 presidential election and lashed out at supporters of the newly re-elected Donald Trump.
Photo: Disney
At the time, Snow White producer Marc Platt flew to meet with Zegler, and eventually, a team was hired to vet her social media posts.
That brings us to the present.
Jonah Platt Speaks Out
Marc Platt’s son, Jonah, took to Instagram yesterday and put Zegler on blast.
Responding to a user who criticized Marc Platt for attempting to quell Ziegler’s activism, Jonah defended his father and put the blame for Snow White’s dismal performance squarely on Zegler’s shoulders.
Photo: Playbill
“You really want to do this? Yeah, my dad, the producer of enormous piece of Disney IP with hundreds of millions of dollars on the line, had to leave his family to fly across the country to reprimand his 20 year old employee for dragging her personal politics into the middle of promoting the movie for which she signed a multi-million dollar contract to get paid and do publicity for,” Jonah wrote.
Zegler, he continued, “hijacked the conversation for her own immature desires at the risk of all the colleagues and crew and blue collar workers who depend on that movie to be successful. Narcissism is not something to be coddled or encouraged.”
See below for his full comment.
Photo: Colin Rugg on X
A Disaster For Disney
There has been plenty of hand-wringing in the aftermath of Snow White‘s implosion at the box office. Despite numerous other factors, including the Hollywood strikes, poor critical reviews, and Disney’s mishandling of the dwarfs, it is hard not to lay the preponderance of the blame for the film’s disastrous release at the feet of Zegler.
Photo: Disney
The actress has now starred in two major films distributed by Disney and managed to create a firestorm surrounding both.
Snow White is in theaters now.
Image: MickeyBlog
