It’s been a long, bumpy road for Disney’s live-action Snow White remake, and as the film inches closer to its release, things aren’t looking any better. The project, which has been plagued with controversy since its announcement, is now facing a significant blow at the box office—again.Credit: DisneyJust weeks ago, early projections estimated that the movie could see a domestic opening weekend between $63 million and $70 million. While not an impressive number given its reported budget of more than $240 million, it still provided a small glimmer of hope for Disney. However, the latest tracking numbers paint an even grimmer picture: the film is now projected to open at just $53 million.For a movie that was originally expected to be a major release for Disney, this is a dramatic drop—and a clear sign that audiences aren’t exactly rushing to the theaters for this one.A Movie That Couldn’t Escape ControversyFrom the moment Snow White was announced, backlash has followed it at every turn. The controversy started when Game of Thrones actor Peter Dinklage criticized the film’s depiction of the seven dwarfs, calling the remake “backwards” and questioning why Disney was even attempting another adaptation. This sparked immediate debate over whether the classic story needed updating.Credit: DisneyThen, the casting of Rachel Zegler as Snow White fueled further discussion, as some fans questioned why Disney cast an actress of Colombian descent to play a traditionally fair-skinned German princess. While the company defended its casting choices, things escalated when Zegler herself made divisive comments about the original 1937 animated film.In multiple interviews, Zegler dismissed Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs as outdated, calling it sexist and saying that the new version would move away from the idea of a princess “waiting for a prince to save her.” She also made comments about how Snow White would now be a more independent and empowered character. While Disney has long been moving in this direction with its female leads, Zegler’s tone came across as condescending to many longtime fans, who felt she was outright disrespecting the beloved film.To make matters worse, when backlash started to grow online, Zegler responded in ways that only intensified the controversy.Rachel Zegler’s Latest Response Didn’t HelpWith the movie facing an uphill battle, Zegler recently attempted to address the criticism, seemingly trying to soften her stance. She tried to reassure audiences that the movie would still respect the original story.“I interpret people’s sentiments towards this film as passion,” Zegler told Vogue Mexico. “What an honor to be a part of something that people feel so passionately about. We’re not always going to agree with everyone who surrounds us and all we can do is our best.”Credit: DisneyHowever, it seems like the damage has already been done. Her latest attempt at damage control hasn’t moved the needle in Disney’s favor, as Snow White’s box office projections continue to slide.A Marketing Nightmare for DisneyDisney now finds itself in an awkward position. The film’s budget ballooned to over $240 million, meaning it would likely need to make at least $600 million globally just to break even. But, with the movie’s buzz being overwhelmingly negative and interest from general audiences seemingly fading, Snow White could be one of Disney’s biggest financial missteps in recent years.Adding to the trouble is the fact that Disney has barely promoted the movie. Unlike previous live-action remakes like The Little Mermaid (2023) or Beauty and the Beast (2017), which had major marketing pushes leading up to their release, Snow White has been largely absent from Disney’s promotional campaigns. In fact, Disney didn’t even mention the movie in its Q4 financial report, leading some to speculate that the studio is already preparing for a box office failure.And let’s not forget the YouTube backlash. The trailers for Snow White have been massively downvoted. This level of negative engagement isn’t typical, even for controversial films, and suggests that audience interest is rapidly declining rather than building toward release.Credit: DisneyThe Road AheadSo where does this leave Disney’s Snow White? At this point, it seems unlikely that the film will recover from the rough press and online negativity. Unless there’s a major shift in audience perception—perhaps through incredibly strong word-of-mouth after release—it’s hard to see Snow White pulling off a Cinderella-style comeback.If these current projections hold, Snow White could be one of Disney’s biggest box office disappointments in recent years, potentially even struggling to hit The Marvels (2023) levels of performance. It’s a reminder that even Disney isn’t immune to audience backlash—especially when fans feel like the studio is changing a beloved classic in ways they don’t agree with.The question now isn’t whether Snow White will underperform but just how bad the final numbers will be.Will you be watching the live-action Snow White movie in a few weeks? Let us know in the comments!The post Disney Runs Into More Trouble, Suffers Crushing Blow To “Woke” ‘Snow White’ Film appeared first on Inside the Magic.