The Disney live-action remake of Snow White has been steeped in criticism for a little while now. Rachel Zegler, who is playing the titular character in the new movie, was met with criticism over honest comments she made about the princess’ story, and there’s been backlash over how the seven dwarfs will be portrayed in the film. Now, the son of 1937’s Snow White’s co-director David Hand has spoken out about the 2024 remake, and he didn’t hold back.
David Hand, whose father of the same name worked with Walt Disney and was a co-director for the original Snow White, called out the remake. He told The Telegraph that both men would be “turning in their grave,” and he claimed that the current bosses are going to “destroy” the 1937 film. Not holding back his critical opinion, he said:
It’s a whole different concept and I just totally disagree with it, and I know my dad and Walt would also very much disagree with it.
Some of the changes in the film appear to pertain to how Snow White and the prince's relationship is portrayed as well as the casting of the seven dwarfs. A leaked set photo seemed to reveal taht just one of the seven actors playing the characters has dwarfism. Both of those aspects have been criticized over the last few months.
Rachel Zegler has faced criticism for comments she made at D23 about this new version of Snow White. She explained in the interview that “it’s no longer 1937,” and said her princess is “not going to be saved by the prince.” The West Side Story star also explained that in the film, which is on the 2024 movie schedule, her character is “dreaming of becoming the leader she knows she can be.” People did not agree with that take, and called her out. However, many have also come to the young actress’ defense, comparing her to Robert Pattison and Harrison Ford, who both have led franchises they’ve shared honest critiques about.
In addition to the star's comments, the decision to reportedly not have seven actors with dwarfism play the titular dwarf characters has been met with criticism. Jackass star Wee Man called out Disney for not casting accordingly for the movie, and Peter Dinklage has shared blunt thoughts about the decision to make the film in the first place.
Going back to these latest comments from the son of the original filmmaker, Hand explained that he thinks many young people have never seen the original film, and “don’t know what they’re talking about.” He also called these criticisms of the 1937 flick “pathetic.” He then defended the OG flick, saying it was made “with good taste.” Continuing to explain why he does not approve of this new version of Snow White, he said:
I’m afraid of what they’re going to do with the early films…their thoughts are just so radical now. They change the stories, they change the thought process of the characters. They’re making up new woke things and I’m just not into any of that. I find it quite frankly a bit insulting [what] they may have done with some of these classic films. There’s no respect for what Disney did and what my dad did. I think Walt and he would be turning in their graves.
Overall, it's clear that people have strong thoughts on Snow White and are weighing in on it from a lot of different angles. Clearly, David Hand is opposed to the remake, based on his sentiments. However, it's worth noting that, other than the few details Disney has released about the movie and Rachel Zegler’s comments about how it’s been updated, we really don’t know much about it; we haven’t even seen a trailer.
We can only wait and see how the discussion will continue to play out as the release date draws closer. Snow White is slated to hit theaters March 22, 2024. While we wait for the Disney film to premiere, you can check out the 2023 movie schedule to see what's currently playing or arriving in the near future.
