One of the most delightful press moments from Disney’s new live-action “Snow White” movie, in my opinion, took place last week, not on any red carpet but at an Equinox gym parking lot. As Israeli actress Gal Gadot made her way to her car, a paparazza approached the star, who plays the Evil Queen in the film directed by Mark Webb (“(500) Days of Summer,” “The Amazing Spider-Man”).
“I’m really excited for the ‘Snow White’ movie,” the photographer said, and as Gadot tried to wave her and the rest of the crowd away from her car with “thank you” and “have a great day,” the same person asked, “Do you think people should give it a chance and watch it?”
Gadot, now seated in her car and about to close its tinted window door, gave off what seemed to be a genuine smile: “Of course, it’s a great movie,” she said, letting out a little chuckle. Gadot feels so charming and genuine in this off-the-cuff moment, so different from the controlled press events around the already controversial movie which only officially premieres on March 21.
The live-action movie is an adaptation of the classic 1937 animated movie “Snow White and the Seven Dwarves,” itself an adaptation of the 1812 story by the brothers Grimm. The Evil Queen’s black head covering under a golden crown is perhaps as iconic as the red, yellow and blue puffy-sleeved dress of the movie’s titular character. The 1937 movie was Disney’s first full-length feature film, the one that started the tradition of making the most memorable of musical animated movies that continued on from “Aladdin” to “Moana.” And this film also continues to build on that musical tradition with an incredibly infectious soundtrack by Jewish music maven Benj Pasek and his partner Justin Paul.
Rachel Zegler, who made her debut as Maria in another musical adaptation, Steven Spielberg’s 2021 “West Side Story,” plays Snow White in the new film. And yet, in the years since the movie was first announced, people have been casting and recasting their versions of “villain” and “hero” in the behind-the-scenes saga of “Snow White,” one that has little to do with the movie on screen.
If you’re not very tuned into the nitty gritty of it all but just seeing the headlines, you may think this movie has somehow become another way to relitigate the Israel-Hamas War, something that people have done with proxy celebrities since October 7, framing those who stand staunchly with their chosen cause as the most beautiful and charming and right of them all and the ones who don’t as villains with blood on their hands.
Gadot who was born and raised in Israel; she was crowned Miss Israel in 2004 and served for two years in the IDF, like all Israeli women are legally obligated to do (Gadot served as a fitness instructor and mastered krav maga, all skills that helped her later in her iconic action roles, I’m sure). Since October 7, 2023, she’s spoken up in support of the Israeli people, against antisemitism, and first and foremost for the release of the Israeli hostages, 59 of whom still remain in Gaza.
Zegler, who is not Jewish and comes from a Polish and Columbian background, has been supporting Palestinian causes since 2021. When the “Snow White” trailer premiered in August of 2024, she posted on X in celebration of its 120 million views in the first 24 hours and followed that up with, “and always remember, free palestine.”
and always remember, free palestine.
— rachel zegler (she/her/hers) (@rachelzegler) August 12, 2024
The tweet was seen by many as not just a political statement but also a dig against Gadot. That’s Possibly how Gadot herself saw it, or at least the person running the star’s X account, which reposted and then deleted a response to Zegler by Maya Goldin which reads: “Trying to campaign on the head of your co-star, who actually lives through war, just so you’ll look cooler with the kids, is really pathetic.” This week, Goldin said she didn’t believe it was Gadot who shared her message because, being an Israeli actress in Hollywood, she’s well-versed in the type of tightrope walking you have to do to maintain your image.
Gadot has not just been victim of anti-Israel trolling, but also from those in Israel who criticize her activism for not being enough, pointing out, for example, how she didn’t wear a yellow ribbon to represent the plight of the hostages to recent award shows. Gadot hasn’t responded to these controversies for the most part, and never plays the victim — it would be off for a Hollywood star. And many Israelis do see her as one of the most prominent and dignified voices talking on behalf to the Israeli hostages. Over the years, Gadot has spoken in support of Israel and the IDF during wars, but also about her dreams of peace and security. Yet it’s clear that she’ll keep getting hateful responses and her movies will keep getting boycott threats whether or not she says anything, just by virtue of being Israeli and having served in the army.
But the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is just one of the many controversies that have swarmed “Snow White,” whose release was also postponed because of the pandemic and the SAG-AFTRA strike. From the very moment it was announced, there has been an “anti-woke” backlash against its modern, more feminist retelling — the movie is written by Erin Cressida Wilson, known for writing the movie “Secretary” and the Diane Arbus biopic “Fur.” The film’s premise is no longer about a Snow White waiting for her prince to come, but about Snow White fighting against the evil queen and falling for a rebel who wants to defeat her, too — Andrew Burnap’s Jonathan.
There’s similar backlash against Zegler herself. There have been many racist comments about the fact that she is not as “fair” as the original Snow White cartoon. Zegler also angered fans of the original movie when she called its premise “weird.” And yes, there are her political opinions, not just about Israel, but a very public series of posts she made after the latest election, for which she later apologized.
Another controversy centers the casting of the seven dwarfs. After actor Peter Dinklage called the decision to keep the seven dwarfs in the film “backward,” Disney responded that they reevaluated these characters, talking to people in the dwarfism community and making the decision to recreate them in CGI (two are voiced by Jewish actors, Andrew Barth Feldman as Dopey and Jason Kravits as Sneezy), which in turn drew backlash from actors who said roles for those with dwarfism are already rare enough.
So yes, no shortage of drama and a lot to contend with for Disney’s PR. They ultimately chose to make the film’s promotion a more condensed and often intimate affair, sending Zegler to Spain for the movie’s secret premiere in a real life castle, and Gadot on a small press tour stateside (and a visit to meet with the other villains at Disneyland) along with a more humble Hollywood premiere with limited press.
Headlines keep framing the movie’s “drama” to be all about the tension between Zegler and Gadot — after all, we love to pit women against each other, and to argue about who the fairest one of all really is. Yet the drama between the two? It feels mostly overblown. After all, who hasn’t worked with someone whose politics they don’t agree with? According to People, Zegler and Gadot have nothing in common — one a young woman in her early 20s, the other a 39-year-old mother of four — but also, you don’t have to have anything in common to work together. One source told the magazine that Gadot is annoyed with the drama — she loved working on the movie, even if she and Zegler aren’t friends.
Zegler and Gadot have indeed appeared together, including presenting together on the Oscars stage. Rumors found their way there, too, with people on social media suggesting Gadot turned down the offer to present the award for best documentary to “No Other Land,” which is about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Gadot’s representatives said that was not the case, but that the two were always meant to present for Best Visual Effects.
Gadot’s press tour for “Snow White” so far has been drama-free. She often talks about her four daughters, and how her eldest, Alma, thought it was cool for their mom to play a villain while the youngest daughters were more horrified. She’s talked about the “deliciousness” of recreating Disney’s iconic lines, how delightful and freeing it is to play a villain, someone so far from who she feels she is (“I’m giving myself a compliment,” she laughed). On “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” she ate a whole apple and drew a pretty adorable horse. She’s game, too, to share intimate details about how she almost died while pregnant with her younger daughter, Ori.
Zegler’s appearances seem to be more controlled, but the two did join again together at this weekend’s Hollywood premiere.
So, was the whole movie’s “controversy” blown out of proportion? One interesting take might come from lead producer, Marc Platt. The Jewish “Wicked” producer was at this past weekend’s premiere and can be seen in pictures with Gadot and Zegler. In a recent interview on his son Jonah Platt’s podcast “Being Jewish,” he talked about how he broaches political disagreements among the people he works with, preferring personal conversations to big public displays. He lamented, “We’re programmed now to live in echo chambers, so we can only hear what we want to hear. And it seemed to me that truth died a long time ago.”
So what is the truth about “Snow White?”
Well, the initial critical reception of the film has been overall quite positive. Zegler’s performance is being lauded as supernova-like. One reviewer said he enjoyed Gadot’s “evil queen bop” and thought her take on the character was “fun.” Quite a few were less enthused about the dwarves. We’ll have to wait and see whether it’s a box office success or not.
