Rachel Zegler addresses backlash to controversial 'Snow White' comments: 'It made me sad'

Rachel Zegler has some thoughts about that "Snow White" backlash.

The 23-year-old "West Side Story" star, who is playing the title character in Disney's upcoming live-action "Snow White" remake, is addressing the controversy sparked by various comments she made about the project. In a Variety profile published Wednesday, Zegler suggested her remarks were willfully misunderstood and that the online hate she faced is common for women in the public eye.

"I've watched women get torn down my whole life, my whole career," she said. "We'll watch it in the election that's upcoming. We're gonna witness that for a long time, I fear. Sometimes it can feel like we're going back; it certainly felt that way when that was happening."

Zegler also told the outlet there have been times when she has wanted to "disappear" because her "mere existence has served as an education for people that don't have a basic sense of empathy."

In 2023, a series of resurfaced clips spread on TikTok and X of Zegler discussing the "Snow White" remake in interviews, which critics claimed showed that she did not respect or like the original movie. In one viral clip that attracted criticism, she indicated the new film would have a different take on the central love story.

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"The original cartoon came out in 1937, and very evidently so," she told Extra. "There's a big focus on her love story with a guy who literally stalks her. Weird. So we didn't do that this time."

She added at the time that the remake has a "different approach to what I'm sure a lot of people will assume is a love story, just because we cast a guy in the movie."

In another 2022 interview with Variety, Zegler said "it's no longer 1937," so Snow White is "not going to be saved by the prince" and is "not going to be dreaming about true love."

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But in the Variety interview published Wednesday, Zegler said it "made me sad" that her comments were taken the way they were, as she only meant to suggest that love is not Snow White's only goal in the film. She also clarified the remake actually has an important love story.

"I would never want to box someone in and say, 'If you want love, then you can't work,'" she said. "Or 'If you want to work, then you can't have a family.' It's not true. It's never been true. It can be very upsetting when things get taken out of context or jokes don't land. The love story is very integral. A lot of people wrote that we weren't doing (that storyline) anymore — we were always doing that; it just wasn’t what we were talking about on that day."

Rachel Zegler reveals how 'Snow White' remake explains the character's name

Some critics have taken issue with the casting of Zegler, who is of Colombian descent, as a character described as having "skin as white as snow." But speaking to Variety, the "Shazam! Fury of the Gods" star revealed the new film will explain the character's name a different way.

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"It fell back to another version of 'Snow White' that was told in history, where she survived a snowstorm that occurred when she was a baby," she said. "And so the king and queen decided to name her Snow White to remind her of her resilience. One of the core points in our film for any young woman or young person is remembering how strong you actually are."

Zegler previously spoke out against the "Snow White" backlash last year, saying on X that she didn't want to be tagged in "nonsensical discourse" about her casting. "I really, truly do not want to see it," she wrote, adding that she hopes "every child knows they can be a princess no matter what."

Numerous people of color who have been cast as Disney princesses have faced online backlash, including Halle Bailey, who played Ariel in "The Little Mermaid" live-action remake.

The "Snow White" remake also faced backlash over photos that seemed to show a diverse group of actors of various heights playing the seven dwarfs. But when the film's first teaser trailer was released in August, the dwarfs did not look like they did in those photos and were closer in line with the characters in the original animated film.

"Snow White" is slated to hit theaters on March 21, 2025.

Contributing: Patrick Ryan and Edward Segarra, USA TODAY