Disney's upcoming live-action remake of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs has come in for a fair amount of backlash, in large part due to comments made by its lead actress, Rachel Zegler.
The main criticisms seem to stem from the Shazam! Fury of the Gods star admitting that she wasn't a big fan of the original animated movie as a kid (because it scared her), and only watched it all the way through recently. Zegler also pointed out that some aspects of the animated classic haven't really aged very well, noting that certain plot points - including the "stalker Prince" - should be updated for a modern audience.
“People are making these jokes about ours being the PC Snow White, where it’s like, yeah, it is — because it needed that,” Zegler said in an interview earlier this year, adding that the original "is extremely dated when it comes to the ideas of women being in roles of power and what a woman is fit for in the world.”
Now, almost certainly as a response, Conservative media company The Daily Wire has announced that it's developing a live-action Snow White movie of its own.
Titled Snow White and the Evil Queen, the movie stars 22-year-old actress turned conservative YouTuber Brett Cooper (Heathers) as the titular princess in a project that's being marketed as a more faithful take on the original Brothers Grimm fairy tale, which is now in the public domain.
“It’s a story about a princess and a prince, about beauty and vanity, about love and its power to raise us from death to life,” said Daily Wire co-founder Jeremy Boreing. “It’s our own adaptation of an ancient fairy tale. It’s taken 100 years to build Disney. We know we aren’t what Disney is today, but we hope in time we might become what they were, once upon a time: a little studio with big ideas and the courage to chase them. While Disney still uses Walt’s name, they have all but abandoned his legacy.”
Boreing made the announcement as part of the Bentkey launch, Daily Wire’s new children' entertainment brand that was created as a conservative alternative to the Disney+ streaming service.
“I was raised on the original Grimms’ Fairy Tales, so I’m thrilled that we’re bringing this iconic story to life for the next generation!” Cooper added. “Snow White is such a beautiful character, and I’m honored to be playing her. Like all the best fairy tales, this is a story with timeless values, like love, friendship, and kindness, and I can’t wait to share them.”
Check out the teaser, which features a first glimpse of Cooper as Snow White, below.
The Daily Wire says Bentkey will be available at launch with 150 episodes of 18 shows, including four Bentkey originals. New episodes are due to arrive every Saturday morning.
Snow White and the Evil Queen does not have a release date.