Star of Disney's Snow White live action film calls Prince Charming a 'stalker', as furious fans slam 'woke' remake
15 August 2023, 10:41
The star of Disney's live action remake of Snow White has branded Prince Charming a "stalker".
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Rachel Zegler, 22, plays the title role of the upcoming film, a reimagining of the beloved 1937 classic.
The new film will also feature "magical creatures" instead of the seven dwarfs.
Ms Zegler, also known for starring in Steven Spielberg's remake of West Side Story, said that she and the filmmakers of the Snow White remake took "a different approach".
"There is a big focus on her love story with a guy who literally stalks her - weird," she said.
"So we didn’t do that this time."
Read more: Hugh Grant casting as Oompa Loompa in new Wonka film criticised by actor with dwarfism
Ms Zegler said that the original film was "very evidently" released in 1937, because of the different social attitudes depicted.
"Everyone has their assumptions of what it is going to be, but it is not really a love story at all, which is really, really wonderful," she added.
"We have a different approach to what I am sure a lot of people will assume is a love story just because we cast a guy in the movie.
"It’s none of those things."
The new film, set to be released in March next year, does not appear to have a Prince Charming character. Jonathan, a new character for the film, is played by Andrew Burnap.
Gal Gadot also stars as the Evil Queen in the film, which has its origins in the Brothers Grimm's original 1812 story.
Ms Zegler also said in a separate interview that she had only watched the original film once and thought it was "scary".
Her comments sparked fury among Disney fans.
One person said: "There is nothing wrong with a fictional fantasy fairy tale.
"Leave the classics alone you woke deluded w******."
Another added: "This girl was given the chance of a lifetime to play an iconic Disney princess, a chance that millions of girls would kill for.
"And she decides to... tell everyone how much she hates the fairytale."
But others defended her. "The dogpiling on Rachel Zegler is completely unjustified and is online mob mentality," one person said.
Brittany Eldridge, a commentary editor for the International Journal of Disney Studies, said of Ms Zegler's comments: "To just share your opinion on something and to receive such a significant amount of backlash... shows the wider issue of sexism that we still have in Hollywood."
The new film will also not feature the famous seven dwarves. Photos from the production show "magical creatures" of a variety of heights and races, including men and women.
It comes after Game of Thrones star Peter Dinklage, who has dwarfism, criticised Disney for "still making that backwards story about seven dwarfs living in a cave."
