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Disney’s live-action remake of its 1937 Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs have been getting lots of buzz lately–first because some dislike the idea of a Snow White remake and second because of backlash from an actor who is part of the dwarfism community and says that Disney’s remaking of a movie with the Seven Dwarfs perpetuates stereotypes.
RELATED: No dwarfs in “Snow White” remake; actors outraged over the loss of their “dream roles”
And lately, news about the actress cast to play the role of Snow White herself has come forward to take on the critics and naysayers who take issue with her new role. Disney has cast Rachel Zegler, a 20-year-old actress of Latin descent, to play the role of the princess.
Credit: PEOPLE
In a recent interview on Variety‘s Actors on Actors series, the 20-year-old actress of Latin descent spoke out for the first time about some of the reactions she’s received because of Disney’s choice to cast her in its live-action retake of the Snow White story.
RELATED: Filming for “Snow White” remake to begin in March 2022
“Never in a million years did I imagine that this would be a possibility for me,” Zegler said. “You don’t normally see Snow Whites that are of Latin descent. Even though Snow White is really a big deal in Spanish-speaking countries. You don’t particularly see people who look like me . . . playing roles like that.”
In a tweet that has been deleted, Zegler responded to backlash from critics about Disney’s decision to cast her for the new role, saying, “Yes I am Snow White; no, I am not bleaching my skin for the role.”
Credit: LatinaMedia.co
During the interview on the Variety’s series, Zegler explained to Andrew Garfield, sitting opposite her, that people were not happy when they first learned about her new role.
“When it was announced, it was a huge thing that was trending on Twitter for days, because all of the people were angry,” Zegler said.
Garfield suggested that those who were angry are “the people that we need to educate, the people that we need to love into awareness,” to which Zegler responded, “We need to love them in the right direction. At the end of the day, I have a job to do that I’m really excited to do. I get to be a Latina princess.”
Credit: BuzzFeed News
Snow White remake director Marc Webb says Zegler is the perfect choice because of her wide range of talents.
“Rachel’s extraordinary vocal abilities are just the beginning of her gifts,” Webb said after Zegler was initially cast for the role last summer. “Her strength, intelligence, and optimism will become an integral part of rediscovering the joy in this classic Disney fairytale.”
