Disney’sSnow Whitehas had such a rocky release that it may become only the third live-action remake of its kind not to hit a specific earning target at the box office. The movie’s had a pretty rough go at things for years before Disney even released a trailer. Initial complaints aboutSnow White’s castwere somewhat predictable afterThe Little Mermaidsuffered the same criticism, but a string of bad press ledSnow White’s controversiesto increase severalfold in the years leading up to the film’s release.
Things didn’t end when the movie came out, either. A great deal ofSnow White’s review bombingstemmed from longstanding complaints that Disney’s harsher critics had been holding onto for some time, but negative to middling professional reviews failed to win over prospective audiences who were previously on the fence. As a result,Snow Whitebegan underperforming as soon as opening weekend. Considering the movie’s extremely high budget, this put the film in immediate jeopardy of flopping. Unfortunately for Disney, that struggle’s only gotten worse over the past few weeks ofSnow White’s theatrical run.
Snow White’s Current Box Office Explained
It’s Not Currently On Track To Earn Back Its Budget
With an estimated production budget of $270 million and a marketing budget of around $70 million,Snow Whitewas already on an uphill climb to so much as break even. The movie’s opening weekend grossed $42.2 million, and things only dropped from there. WhileAlto Knights’ box officewas worse thanSnow White’s on release weekend,Deadlinepredicts thatSnow White’s week four earnings could drop as low as $2.8 million after losing 1,210 theaters. This would bring the domestic gross to about $82 million, withThe Numbersreporting the current worldwide gross as $182.4 million.
It’s worth noting that the box office alone doesn’t determine whether a movie truly earns its money back. Merchandising accounts for a lot, particularly on heavily marketed movies. There’s also a chance to make up the difference with digital sales and rentals later down the line. But, given the strength of Zegler’s voice,Snow White’s soundtrackseems like it would be the likeliest side merch to boost the film’s earnings. Unfortunately,Forbesnotes thatSnow White’s album failed to break the top ten in anyBillboardcharts, peaking at #11 in US Kid Albums and #19 in US Top Soundtracks.
Snow White Could Become The 3rd Disney Live-Action Remake To Not Make $200M
Two Other Remakes Fell Short Due To Outside Circumstances
It can be hard to tell where a movie’s box office will finish.Mufasa: The Lion King’s box officewas lower on that film’s opening weekend thanSnow White’s first weekend gross, but it went on to earn significantly more whereasSnow Whiteseems to have languished. Even so, it could have done worse.Disney’s worst-performing remake thus far has been 2020’sMulan, which only grossed $69.9 million against a $200 million budget. Granted,Mulanwas released amid the COVID pandemic and benefited from a paid Premier Access release on Disney+, so its box office doesn’t tell the full story.
Two years beforeMulan’s release,Christopher Robinbecame Disney’s first recent live-action adaptation to bank less than $200 million. However, it barely fell short and likely profited or broke even with earnings of $197.7 million against a budget of about $70 million. That’s an impressive feat consideringChristopher Robinwasn’t released in China, where Hollywood films often earn a large chunk of their international box office.Snow White’s earnings aren’t far behindChristopher Robin’s at the moment, so there is a slim chance the film could break $200 million, even if it still loses more money in the process.
Why Snow White Has Struggled At The Box Office
Years Of Controversy Didn’t Do The Movie Many Favors
So many audiences have grown increasingly irritated with the slate of live-action remakes thatSnow Whitemight have struggled to stumble over the $200 million mark even without the controversies. But while many have written off thehatred towardSnow Whiteas an extension of the racism Zegler facedwhen she was first cast, numerous other issues have sprung up that have nothing to do with the main character’s race. Among the biggest wasSnow White’s dwarf controversy, which was blown up to the point that Peter Dinklage still receives blame for Disney not casting more dwarf actors.
Peter Dinklage obviously doesn’t make casting decisions for Disney, and many have speculated that his comments were blown out of proportion. But he’s not the only actor whose comments have sparked controversy.Zegler drew harsh criticism for calling the 1937 animated film“weird”and characterizing Prince Florian as a stalker, statements that many thought were disrespectful toward a beloved classic that had earned her a lucrative role. These comments were also blown out of proportion to a degree, but many took Zegler’s misinterpretation of the original film’s events as a sign that she was ill-prepared for the role.
These issues alone led to swarms of review-bombing. Unfortunately, the real reviews still leaned mostly toward the negative. Many loved Zegler but found the visuals uninteresting andcriticized Gal Gadot’s Evil Queen. This blurred the line between the honest reviews and the fakes. Even those who acceptedSnow Whiteas the latest of manymovies that have been review-bombedhad been given a seed of doubt. Many viewers who hadn’t cared about the controversies were now seeing professional criticisms of the film’s actual quality, and a number of people were suddenly less enthused about buying a ticket as a result.
Disney’s Next Live-Action Remake Should Easily Make More Than $200 Million
Early Reactions To Marketing Have Already Been Much Better
After its well-received trailer, earlyLilo & Stitchbox office projectionsare predicting the movie to make $100 million in its opening weekend alone. That would already get it halfway to beating the milestone thatSnow Whiteis limping its way toward after four weeks. It helps thatLilo & Stitchisn’t carrying the weight ofSnow White’s multiple controversies. Disney has received backlash for not casting a dark-skinned Hawaiian native as Nani, but it hasn’t come close to the furor that arose over the casting ofThe Little MermaidorSnow White.
If it does well,Lilo & Stitchmight reopen the door to another live-action remake with strong chances of success. AfterSnow Whitefailed to earn high marks at the box office,Disney put the live-actionTangledremake on hold. Given rumors that Disney was looking at Sabrina Carpenter to star, it’s unlikelyTangledwould have shared the same casting backlash Disney experienced with Zegler. If complaints aboutLilo & Stitch’s Nani fail to significantly hurt the film’s box office, there’s every chance for a successfulTangledremake to follow and keep the remake machine alive and humming.
Snow White
Cast
A live-action adaptation of the classic fairy tale. The film follows Snow White as she escapes into the forest and seeks refuge with seven dwarfs to elude her jealous stepmother, the wicked Queen, who is threatened by Snow White’s surpassing beauty.
