Gal Gadot Cites Hollywood Pressure to Villainize Israel as the Main Concern Behind ‘Snow White’ Box Office Doom

Many months after the release of the Snow White live-action remake, the film’s dismal box office performance continues to follow its cast, inviting comments on their lingering sense of disappointment. Despite high expectations and star power, the audience did not respond to the film as hoped, and the repercussions have been felt personally by the actors involved. Gal Gadot, who played one of the leading roles in the Disney outing, revealed that industry pressure to make political comments may have contributed to the film’s struggles.

Snow White‘s failure continues to haunt as Gal Gadot reveals Hollywood pressure to villainize Israel affected its box office performance

Gal Gadot points to Hollywood politics impacting Snow White’s performance

Gal Gadot had been confident that the live-action remake of Snow White would be a “huge success,” but the film’s performance did not meet expectations. In a recent interview on Israel TV, per The Wrap, the actress revealed that after the events of October 7, 2023, Hollywood pressure to “bring up things” against the said state and in favor of Palestine impacted the movie. Notably, Gadot did not make any statements against Israel while on the Snow White press tour, upsetting many who assumed the actress was in favor of Benjamin Netanyahu’s enduring military actions in the Gaza Strip. Gal Gadot, as a matter of fact, has a history of serving in the Israeli Defense Forces.

For those unversed, Snow White capped at $205.7 million at the box office, with $87.2 million of the said revenue coming from domestic markets and $118.5 million coming from international territories, per Box Office Mojo. Gadot notably played the Evil Queen to Rachel Zegler’s titular character. Among other factors contributing to Snow White flopping were woke allegations, creative inadequacies, and more.

A beloved story, millions spent, and yet Snow White stumbled. What really haunted the remake?

Behind Snow White’s tumultuous fallout

Snow White first faced backlash for its color-blind casting, with fans criticizing the choice of Colombian actress Rachel Zegler, who received support from Ariana Grande, playing Disney’s fair-skinned Princess. Many argued that the casting strayed too far from the original animated film’s depiction, sparking debates online among traditionalists. The fact that Zegler mocked the 1937 Snow White iteration did not help her case either. Beyond casting, the use of CGI dwarves instead of live actors disappointed many who expected authenticity and charm. Additionally, portraying Prince Charming as a bandit confused viewers even more, making it harder for them to connect with the story they grew up watching.

Made on a $240 to $270 million budget, Snow White struggled to even bring back its production cost, making Disney reconsider its future projects, including putting the live-action Tangled remake on hold. The latter film, which was in early development, had already hired a director and was working on a script; however, its fate now remains unknown. Hence, while Gal Gadot cites the pressure of politics in Hollywood, it was not the only reason for Snow White flopping, but it does not change the fact that Disney suffered massively following the project in any case.

What are your thoughts on Gal Gadot’s reason for Snow White flopping? Let us know in the comments.