The first Disney princess is returning to theaters on March 21, 2025. The Snow White live-action remake has had a long journey to the screen, filled with many controversies.
The film’s review embargo lifts on March 19, at 3 p.m. ET, and many users are already betting on the film’s Rotten Tomatoes score. With six figures in trades on Kalshi, the film’s early forecasted score is 55.5.
The market closes on March 24, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. ET, and the trading volume will likely continue to grow. Here’s what you need to know about Snow White before making your Rotten Tomatoes predictions.
What is ‘Snow White’?
The 2025 Snow White is a remake of the first Disney princess movie from 1937. Of course, the original movie is based on the Brothers Grimm’s 1812 fairytale.
Starring Rachel Zegler ("West Side Story") in the title role and Gal Gadot ("Wonder Woman") as her Stepmother, the Evil Queen, the magical music adventure journeys back to the timeless story with beloved characters Bashful, Doc, Dopey, Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy, and Sneezy.
Joining Zegler and Gadot in the cast are Andrew Burnap as Jonathan (Snow White’s love interest) and Ansu Kabia as the Huntsman. Jeremy Swift, Martin Klebba, George Salazar, Andy Grotelueschen, Tituss Burgess, Jason Kravits, and Andrew Barth Feldman are playing the seven dwarves with the help of voice and motion capture.
Originally planned for release on March 22, 2024, the film was delayed a year due to the SAG-AFTRA strike. The movie has been in development since 2016, but it has been a rocky road.
‘Snow White’ controversies
When it comes to Snow White, three important controversies have been in the news.
Casting Rachel Zegler
Similar to The Little Mermaid remake, the film was criticized for its color-blind casting. Zegler is of Latin descent, and the film was criticized for casting a Latina in a character originally described as having skin “as white as snow.”
In an interview with Variety, Zegler explains the character’s new origin story for her name:
It fell back to another version of ‘Snow White’ that was told in history, where she survived a snowstorm that occurred when she was a baby. And so the king and queen decided to name her Snow White to remind her of her resilience.
Regardless of the reasoning given, the film was met with a large amount of backlash and hateful comments toward Zegler. But this wasn’t the only controversy.
Besides the casting, Zegler has also publicly shared her distaste for the original 1937 film. She claimed the original film was about a prince who “literally stalks her.” She then went on to say that the new film was more about empowering Snow White.
Again, this was met with disappointment by some who believed the love story was the main point of the movie. The son of the original film’s director went so far as to say, “‘My dad and Walt Disney would be turning in their graves over woke Snow White remake.”
The Seven Dwarfs
Back in 2022, Peter Dinklage criticized the remake of the movie and the film using seven dwarves. Dinklage has a form of dwarfism, but his comments were met with mixed reviews.
Many other actors with dwarfism have disagreed with Dinklage. They believed he shouldn’t speak for the broader community and felt that his criticism led to Disney not casting those from the community.
In July 2023, footage was leaked featuring the seven dwarves being played by a wide array of individuals and only including one actor with dwarfism. Critics believed Dinklage caused an overly politically correct change for the film and cost opportunities for actors with dwarfism in an industry where there are already so few.
Gal Gadot
Beyond representation, the film is being boycotted by both Israel and Palestine supporters. Israeli actress Gadot plays the Evil Witch, and some believed she shouldn’t have been cast in the role, given what is happening in Israel.
On the other hand, following the film’s trailer being released, Zegler tweeted, “and always remember, free palestine.” Her pro-Palestine sentiments were met with criticism from pro-Israel supporters.
There has been so much “anti-woke” backlash that Disney has canceled their plans for a London premiere. But will the controversies overshadow the film?
and always remember, free palestine.
— rachel zegler (she/her/hers) (@rachelzegler) August 12, 2024
Critical reception of Disney live-action remakes
In addition to being controversial, the film is also a live-action remake of a classic. Remakes typically have to overcome the hurdle of comparisons and nostalgia associated with the originals. But how have past Disney live-action remakes performed on Rotten Tomatoes?
Movie | Rotten Tomatoes Score |
Mufasa: The Lion King (2024) | 57% |
The Little Mermaid (2023) | 67% |
Peter Pan & Wendy (2023) | 65% |
Pinocchio (2022) | 27% |
Cruella (2021) | 75% |
Mulan (2020) | 71% |
Dumbo (2019) | 46% |
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019) | 40% |
The Lion King (2019) | 51% |
Aladdin (2019) | 57% |
Lady and the Tramp (2019) | 67% |
Christopher Robin (2018) | 73% |
Beauty and the Beast (2017) | 71% |
Alice Through the Looking Glass (2016) | 29% |
The Jungle Book (2016) | 94% |
Pete’s Dragon (2016) | 88% |
Cinderella (2015) | 84% |
Maleficent (2014) | 54% |
Alice in Wonderland (2010) | 50% |
102 Dalmatians (2000) | 30% |
101 Dalmatians (1996) | 29% |
Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book (1994) | 80% |
There have been 22 Disney live-action remakes dating back to 1994’s Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book. The scores range widely from 27% to 94%.
The average score for the 22 films is 59, which would make the current Kalshi estimation of low 50s make sense. However, the controversies may affect the film’s score.
We can learn from 2023’s The Little Mermaid – the film was also criticized for its color-blind casting of Halle Bailey but was still able to receive a Fresh score of 67. Although, one might argue that Snow White is dealing with more controversies.
With the review embargo still standing, there are no early reviews or reactions just yet. The only feedback thus far has been about the trailer, and it hasn’t been positive. Much of the critiques have been about the CGI. Polygon’s Petrana Radulovic says:
The new Snow White looks like it’s putting in more of a plot, likely one where our plucky heroine will stand up to her despotic tyrant of a stepmother in a YA dystopian plotline out of 2014. Maybe it’ll work, storywise! Visually, though, everything seems like it’s working on the same budget as ABC Family’s Once Upon a Time.
This suggests that critics will have to see if the plot changes are worth the backlash and if the CGI is as bad as initial reactions believe it is.
The film’s many controversies could impact critical reception, but The Little Mermaid demonstrated that diverse casting controversies alone don’t necessarily doom critical reception.
For those looking to place bets, history suggests Disney live-action remakes average around 59% – but this particular fairy tale might need more than magic to reach that mark.
