EXCLUSIVE: Disney delayed Snow White over fears it will be a ‘financial DISASTER’ and flop like Cats – as controversy continues after Rachel Zegler’s woke tirade at ‘weird’ original plot with ‘stalker’ Prince
Disney is said to be delaying the upcoming Snow White remake in an attempt to reveal a ‘financial disaster’ – with producers reportedly fearing it will bomb at the box office and ‘cripple’ any chance of future spin-offs.
Last week, the studio announced that they had postponed the film’s release until March 2025 – a full year after the scheduled date – citing the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike as a driving force behind the decision.
But an insider has exclusively told DailyMail.com that Disney is “figuring out what to do” after making a $330 million turkey – and it is. I look to Tom Hooper’s widely published Cats for guidance on what to avoid.
The decision comes after Rachel Zegler, 22, who plays the titular princess, launched a woke tirade on the original ‘weird’ plot featuring a ‘stalker’ prince – despite having only seen the 1937 animation once as a child.
In a new publicity photo, Snow White is surrounded by CGI dwarfs, despite Disney previously confirming they had been replaced by ‘magical creatures’
During the summer, the seven ‘magical creatures’ were depicted who would be the more politically correct replacements for the dwarves
Rachel Zegler, 22, sparked controversy after she criticized the original 1937 plot, calling it “weird” and the prince a “stalker.”
“Disney had to delay Snow White because they spent so much money on it, and if it ends up being a financial disaster at the box office, it could potentially cripple any future remakes and potential Snow White sequels they have planned,” the insider claimed. .
“They also need to distance themselves from the bad taste in the mouths of online critics and instead want to deliver a great film and get to a point where they do it well.
‘They realize that they have been thinking too much and now have it all a little more under control.’
The upcoming production – the latest in a long line of Disney remakes – has been mired in controversy.
Bosses first came under fire for choosing Colombian-American Zegler as the lead, despite the story being about a traditionally “fair” German princess with “skin as white as snow.”
They then announced that ‘magical creatures’ would replace the Seven Dwarves to ‘avoid stereotyping’ after Game of Thrones actor Peter Dinklage criticized the ‘damn backwards story’.
Earlier this year, a mix of men and women from different ethnicities, with an actual dwarf in their number, were filmed during filming – but they now appear to have been replaced by seven CGI dwarfs.
According to the insider, producers and crew members are said to be trying to learn from the mistakes made by films like Sonic The Hedgehog, which was forced to delay its release after viewers scheduled Sonic’s appearance following the reveal of the first trailer.
They’re also said to be watching Cats – starring Taylor Swift, Judi Dench and James Corden – which flopped at the box office upon its release in 2020 and is widely regarded as one of the worst films of all time.
“They just need some time to sort everything out – and besides, we’re still dealing with the strikes,” the source said.
Zegler, best known for her breakout role in West Side Story, pictured on set in London as Snow White
Producers would learn from the mistakes made in the 2020 Sonic film, whose titular character was panned after its initial trailer release
Bosses are also said to be investigating where it all went wrong for the box office flop Cats, to avoid repeating the same mistakes
“It’s a perfect storm at the moment, but they are embracing the changes and expecting everything to work out and exceed expectations. The work begins now.’
They added, “They also had to delay the movie because not only did they have to make it as good as possible, but there are a lot of toys they have to prepare, so they need the dwarves and the rest of the characters to look exactly out as they should be.’
Producers are said to have reversed their decision to include a wide range of actors to play the dwarfs after receiving backlash from Dinklage, who has achondroplasia – a form of dwarfism.
“Literally no offense to anyone, but I was a little surprised when they 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 Marc Maron. his WTF podcast last year.
“Take a step back and look at what you’re doing there. It makes no sense to me. You’re progressive in a way and you’re still making that damn retarded story about seven dwarves living together in a cave. What the fuck are you doing man?”
Disney said the film would have cultural consultants, which they also used for Aladdin and Mulan.
The upcoming adaptation, co-written by Barbie’s Greta Gerwig, will focus on a “stronger” Snow White who dreams of becoming a leader.
But Zegler sparked a media firestorm earlier this year when she praised the omission of what she called the Prince’s “weird” storyline. Amid speculations, the film won’t be the classic love story.
Disney previously teased that it was taking a “different approach” to the 1937 animated classic, which saw Snow White rescued by a prince
Speaking to Variety at the Disney D23 Expo in California last September, Zegler said: “She won’t be saved by the prince and she won’t dream of true love.
“She dreams of becoming a leader she knows she can be, and the leader her late father told her she could be if she were fearless, honest, courageous and faithful. It really is an incredible story that young people everywhere can recognize themselves in.’
She added: “The original cartoon came out in 1937, and that was clearly the case. A lot of attention is paid to her love story with a man who literally stalks her. Foreign! Foreign! So we didn’t do that this time.’
The 1937 film follows Snow White as she befriends the seven dwarfs while hiding from her evil stepmother, who later poisons her with an apple before Prince Charming wakes her from her sleep with a kiss.
It was loosely based on the 1812 fairy tale of the same name by the Brothers Grimm.
Andrew Burnap plays new character Jonathan, instead of the Prince, in the upcoming remake, while Ansu Kabia stars alongside him as the Huntsman. Gal Gadot is the evil queen.