Disney Opts for Scaled Back Premiere for 'Snow White' Amid Controversies Surrounding Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot: Report

Disney has decided to scale back the Hollywood premiere of its upcoming live-action adaptation of Snow White, opting for a more subdued event amid ongoing controversies involving its lead stars.
The movie is set to premiere on March 15 at the El Captain Theatre. However, contrary to most Disney events, the premiere event for "Snow White" will not include an extensive red carpet arrangement. Media coverage will be limited to only photographers and a house crew, which means the cast or creative team of the film would not be subjected to interviews, as first reported by Variety.
The scaled-back premiere allegedly comes amid multiple controversies surrounding its titular stars, Rachel Zegler (Snow White) and Gal Gadot (Evil Queen).
Zegler, who plays Snow White, for her Latina heritage. Many argue that the casting deviates from the character's traditional European depiction. Additionally, her remarks in 2022 calling the original film "dated" and describing the prince as a "stalker" sparked further controversy.
"She's not going to be saved by the prince, and she's not going to be dreaming about true love; she's dreaming about becoming the leader she knows she can be," Zegler added.
Rachel Zegler is single-handedly destroying this movie.
— 🎀Tuggs🎀✝️ (@thattugglife) August 11, 2023
My TikTok feed is full of ppl on all sides posting about her holier-than-thou crappy attitude is not okay & Snow doesn’t need to be modern.
It’s impressive how many people she’s turned against seeing Snow White.
Bravo👏🏼 pic.twitter.com/EUdli8mh1v
Gadot, for her part, has drawn into controversy after she publicly supported Israel in light of its ongoing conflict in the Middle East. In contrast, Zegler voiced public support for Palestine.
Outside of controversies surrounding the actresses, the film's handling of the seven dwarfs has also drawn criticism. Disney reimagined the dwarfs as CGI "magical creatures" of varying sizes instead of casting actors with dwarfism. The studio announced it was taking this approach to avoid reinforcing stereotypes from the 1937 animated original, consulting with the dwarfism community in the process. However, the move has been criticized by many, including actors with dwarfism like Peter Dinklage, who called the original story "backward," and others like Jason "Wee Man" Acuña, who argued it took away opportunities from the community.