Fans were treated to the first look at Disney’s live-action “Snow White” remake at the D23 Expo on Friday, revealing Rachel Zegler in the role of the first-ever Disney princess.
The 30-second teaser, which was shown exclusively to attendees in the room and was not released online, opened with the Evil Queen’s iconic question to her magic mirror. Snow White dons her signature costume in the footage, which ends with her dropping the poisoned apple.
Background
Snow White is one of the oldest characters in Disney’s catalog with its presence in merchandise, theme parks, and other outlets. The original animated feature titled Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a milestone for being the first full-length animated film in history and paved a path for a slew of legacy animated features which are now also being turned into live-action movies. The live-action Snow White is expected to carry on the legacy.
Snow White is the latest Disney fairytale that’s returning to the big screen soon. The 1937 animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, is being remade into an upcoming live-action film produced by Walt Disney Pictures. Snow White’s been portrayed in live action before by Julia Roberts in 2012’s Mirror Mirror and by Kristen Stewart in 2012’s Snow White and the Huntsman. Those films also featured Snow’s iconic antagonist, the Evil Queen, who will of course appear in the upcoming film.
The Plot of Snow White
Snow White tells the story of a beautiful but orphaned princess, who lives with her stepmother the Wicked Queen. The Queen is jealous of her because as Snow White comes of age, the Evil Queen is no more “the fairest of them all.” One day when Snow White gets a prince’s attention, who immediately falls in love with her and her beauty, the Queen summons her loyal huntsman to take Snow White into the forest and kill her, but he cannot bring himself to do so. Snow White then escapes to the jungle where she meets the seven dwarfs. Many iterations of this story have been told time and again and Disney has promised this time to make a feature that resonates with modern times and audiences.
Snow White: The Cast
The movie will feature West Side Story star Rachel Zegler in the titular role opposite Gal Gadot, who in stark contrast to her Wonder Woman role will play the Evil Queen. They will be accompanied by Martin Klebba (Pirates of the Caribbean), who will play Grumpy and The Inheritance star Andrew Burnap will play a new character for the movie, Jonathan. As stellar as the talent is in front of the camera, the talent behind the camera is as well, with Sony’s The Amazing Spider-Man filmmaker Marc Webb, will direct Snow White with a screenplay by The Girl on the Train fame Erin Cressida Wilson and Greta Gerwig, who is currently working on Barbie starring Ryan Gosling and Margot Robbie.
Snow White: Release Date
Snow White still does not have a release date, though it’s expected to come out in theaters sometime in 2023. Filming was set to begin in March 2020 but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After Rachel and Gal’s casting was officially announced, production on the remake kicked off in March 2022. Filming briefly paused when a fire damaged the production set at Pinewood Studios in England. Gal confirmed in April 2022 that she finished filming her scenes, which include musical numbers. Filming is expected to officially conclude at the beginning of July, per reports. Disney debuted the first trailer at the D23 expo on Friday, September 9, 2022.
At D23, Snow White wasn’t mentioned its release date, but on September 15, 2022, Disney announced that the film will be released on March 22, 2024.
