The son of the animator who directed the original Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs has lambasted Disney’s forthcoming live-action remake, which stars Rachel Zegler in the lead role.
Zegler, 22, has received criticism from some Disney fans after repeatedly suggesting that the original storyline was no longer fit for modern audiences.
“The original cartoon came out in 1937, and very evidently so. There’s a big focus on her love story with a guy who literally stalks her. Weird! Weird! So we didn’t do that this time,” Zegler told ExtraTV in October 2022.
“We absolutely wrote a Snow White that... she’s not going to be saved by the prince, and she’s not going to be dreaming about true love; she’s going to be dreaming about becoming the leader she knows she can be,” she added in another interview.
In an interview with The Telegraph, David Hand, whose father of the same name was one of the directors on Walt Disney’s 1937 hit, said a lot of younger people “have never seen the original” and “don’t know what they’re talking about”.
He said of the reimagining: “I mean, 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.”
The 91-year-old continued: “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.”
Rachel Zegler will portray Snow White in a live-action remake of the animated Disney classic— (Left: YouTube/20th Century Studios – Right: YouTube/RKO Radio Pictures)
Zegler’s comments have recently resurfaced on social media as some commentators accused her of “pseudo-feminism”.
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In a TikTok video with more than 10 million views, a user who goes by the handle @CosyWithAngie said: “It is not anti-feminist to want to fall in love, to want to get married, to want to stay at home, to be soft, to want to be a homemaker. None of these things makes you less valuable as a person or a woman.
“Criticising Disney princesses is not feminist. Not every woman is a leader. Not every woman wants to be a leader. Not every woman wants or craves power and that’s ok,” she continued.
“Thinking that a woman is any less valuable because she falls in love or because she accepts help from somebody instead of girl-bossing her way through her problems is not feminist.”
Representatives for Zegler did not respond to The Independent’s request for comment.
Zegler has not directly responded to the debate; however, posting on X (formerly Twitter) on 11 August, she wrote: “I hope the world becomes kinder.”
In a separate tweet, she added: “I love you very much. forever and ever. remember to be kind. treat each other with patience and empathy. remember that you are loved unconditionally, no matter your mistakes, no matter your misunderstandings. you deserve it. you deserve love. you deserve to live without fear. x”
