Disney’s 2025 Snow White live action remake of the 1937 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs has accumulated record low reviews mere weeks after its release.
IMDb’s 300K reviews on the movie averaged a shocking 1.6 star rating. The volume of one star ratings even prompted the site to add a disclaimer to its reviews for the film, warning people that their rating mechanism detected unusual voting activity on the title. The movie's average rating is on par with the 100 Lowest Rated Movies on IMDb’s website.
The movie received a multitude of backlash in production due to casting. Many were unhappy with the choice of Rachel Zegler to play Snow White, criticizing the choice due to her Latin descent in contrast to the classic character’s description of “skin as white as snow.” Additionally, casting for the Seven Dwarfs caused a stir among fans due to Disney’s choice to use CGI to animate the Dwarfs instead of casting actors with dwarfism.
The film was also under fire in production for proposed plot changes, as Disney attempted to update the classic story to assimilate with modern times. However, many fans were still shocked by the extent of the changes.
In the remake, instead of her namesake being her fair skin, she is named in honor of a snowstorm that swept over her kingdom the night she was born.
Much less emphasis is placed upon her appearance, in stark contrast to the plot of the original, which is largely centered around physical appearance in her conflict with the Evil Queen. This conflict takes a backseat as Snow White longs to be lawfully fair, rather than physically fair.
In the original film, Snow White longs for true love, finding it when she is saved from death by the prince, who she subsequently falls in love with. While every other character from the original film is included in the remake, the prince remains noticeably absent, replaced with love interest and common thief, Jonathan.
In a rare similarity to the original, after Snow White is poisoned by the apple of the Evil Queen, Jonathan kisses her, returning her to life.
The climax of the movie follows as Snow White confronts the Evil Queen, which was completely absent from the original movie. She takes the kingdom back by reminding the people and guards of how the kingdom was before the Evil Queen’s rule.
The Evil Queen stands before the Magic Mirror for the final time and is outraged as it tells her that Snow White will always be fairer than she is due to Snow White being just and kind, again downplaying the part of physical fairness from the original film.
Unlike in the original film where the Queen’s disappearance or death is implied, the remake shows the Queen being sucked into the mirror after she attempts to shatter it in her jealous rage.
Not only did the plot disappoint fans, but so did the costuming.
It appeared to be an afterthought, Snow White’s classic blue and yellow dress lacking the refined craftsmanship seen in previous Disney remakes. Some critics online have compared it to a kid’s princess costume.
The dress stands in stark contrast when compared to the costuming of Disney’s 2015 remake of Cinderella, in which Cinderella’s blue ball gown was adorned with 10,000 Swarovski crystals, with 1.7 million crystals also appearing in the other costumes throughout the film.
The remake Snow White wore the classic red headband for no more than fifteen minutes of the film. Her appearance has been faced with a lot of criticism due to barely visible makeup and a distractingly unflattering hairstyle.
All in all, with poor costuming, hair and makeup coupled with far too many plot shifts, many fans agree that Disney’s 2025 Snow White simply lacks the magic of a Disney princess.
