The preview trailer for Snow White was released earlier in 2024 and was a colossal failure for Disney’s Alan Bergman. The VP who oversees the film side of the company was likely quite displeased to see the trailer become one of the most disliked movie previews in the history of cinema. It was well-earned; Rachel Zegler (the star who played Snow White) has been a part of controversy after controversy. Whether it has been calling the prince in the story a “stalker” or claiming the original Walt Disney film is “dated” or weighing in on Middle Eastern politics in crude and obtuse ways, Zegler has been anything but princess-like. And who can forget her preemptively declaring that she would not be “bleaching” her skin for the role? Truly Zegler has been anathema for any kind of cinematic success.
But with Moana 2 releasing last week and Disney desperate to get this new trailer out into the public sphere without significant controversy, a strategy seems to have been hatched that has proven fairly adept thus far. Disney elected to largely keep Snow White hidden from the public. No YouTube video was released, so no audience feedback was possible. Disney simultaneously kept the Moana 2 reviews embargoed until two hours before the film released. As a result, two potentially damaging narratives were unable to take hold. First, Disney didn’t have to defend Snow White as Wicked soared at the box office — a scenario that could have dampened Moana enthusiasm. And second, holding Moana reviews until the film released meant that no Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny story could happen. People went to see Moana 2 often because they had no idea how bad the film is. Today, it is teetering around a “rotten” rating on Rotten Tomatoes — a website that already is crafted in such a way to protect big-budget films from such a stinky and stinging label.
But now, with both missions accomplished for Mickey, Disney has finally released the Snow White trailer to the public. The results have not been pretty.
In only one hour, Snow White was already being ratio’ed by dislike votes on YouTube. If it repeats the reaction seen for the preview trailer, it could be a mountainous, negative reaction. Whether or not that will materialize into a cinematic flop has yet to be seen. However, protecting Moana 2 from Snow White seems to have worked out wonderfully for Disney CEO Bob Iger et al. And really, what more could they ask for?
The Snow White trailer, of course, is rather awful. Ugly, disconcerting CGI / AI dwarfs actually seem to make audience members feel a sense of disgust. The evil queen is more beautiful than the princess. Snow White not only saves the prince in the trailer, but she also appears to be leading a socialist revolution against the monarchy. It may be one of the last byproducts of a super-woke Hollywood era that is already seen as a stain and tremendous failure in the history of cinema. My oh my how things have changed!
Rachel Zegler as Snow White in Disney’s live-action SNOW WHITE. Photo courtesy of Disney. © 2024 Disney Enterprises Inc. All Rights Reserved.
One thing seems certain, though. None of the cringe has changed for Snow White… and at this point, Disney is far better served attempting to throw all their marketing at Lilo and Stitch. That one still has Ohana. Snow White just has “Oh-the-horror”. And there’s no end in sight for the plight of this film until it finally makes its way through the box office and off onto a forgotten cubby-hole in streaming.
