Eight years ago, the world learned that a live-action remake of Snow White was in the works. Fast-forward a few years, and controversy and backlash spewed out left, right, and center.
From saying that Rachel Zegler (who is of Polish and Colombian descent) isn’t “white enough” to play Snow White to casting only one actor with dwarfism among the dwarves, no one was happy.
Now, there are talks of boycotting the film because of it starring Gal Gadot:
Why The Boycott?
Beyond Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, we cannot forget one of the most important characters of all: the Evil Queen. Gal Gadot, the high-profile Israeli actor and former IDF soldier, will bring this character to life in the upcoming live-action remake.
Back in November, she reportedly organized a US screening of a film that attempts to justify the Gaza genocide. Along with that, in December, she also posted on Instagram a lengthy denouncement of the world’s failure to condemn Hamas’s rape and murder of women during the attack. These are some of the reasons why a boycott campaign was launched.
Who Will Support It?
First, we need to talk about the propellers of the boycott: the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel. This organization was launched in April 2004 and is made up of Palestinian academics and intellectuals.
They are pushing for the boycott of Israeli academic and cultural institutions that participate in Israel’s denial of Palestinian rights.
Recently, they posted on Instagram requesting the world to boycott Disney’s Snow White film for all the reasons mentioned above. They described Gadot as having “consciously and irrefutably taken up the role of a cultural ambassador for Israel.” That is why they believe her films should be boycotted.
Their Instagram post alone got 80,000 likes and counting, along with more than 100,000 likes when it was reposted by Land of Palestine. Most of the comments were from people who said they would boycott the film.
Peering Into What’s Ahead
By the time the film is released in March 2025, its box office numbers will indicate whether or not the boycott campaign worked. All we know is that only time will tell.