Summary
Disney’sSnow Whitelive-action remake starring Rachel Zegler andWonder Woman’s Gal Gadot will be released in theaters next month. Box office projections for the film are now out, and there are reasons to be concerned and optimistic.
Disney’sSnow Whiteis the latest in the company’s long line of live-action remakes of its animated classics. Besides notable exceptions like Jon Favreau’sThe Jungle Bookor Angelina Jolie’sMaleficent, mostmoviegoers have hated Disney’s live-action remakesand often criticize them for being soulless shot-for-shot replications of the originals. Despite these complaints, Disney could generally expect box office success from these remakes, although recent entries likeThe Little Mermaidproved this was far from guaranteed. Now, box office projections for Disney’sSnow Whiteindicate it could open on the lower end of the company’s live-action remakes, but that doesn’t necessarily spell doom.
PerDeadline,Quorum reports that Disney’s Snow White is on track for a $63-$70 million 3-day opening weekend at the domestic box office, with “other sources” predicting $65 million.For leading star Zegler, who plays the eponymous Disney princess, this would amount to her best domestic opening yet, withThe Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakescurrently holding the record for her highest domestic debut with $44.6 million. However, it’s a far cry from the domestic opening weekend totals ofDisney’s more successful live-action remakessuch as 2019’sThe Lion King, which opened with $191.77 million, and 2017’sBeauty and the Beast, which debuted with $174.7 million. Both remakes ultimately grossed over $1 billion worldwide each.
If Quorum’s box office tracking numbers hold,Snow Whitewill open behind 2023’sThe Little Mermaidlive-action remake. The latter debuted domestically on the Memorial Day Weekend with $95.6 million over 3 three-days and $118.8 million over the four-day frame. This was considered a disappointing box office debut, and despite grossing $569.6 million worldwide, the live-actionThe Little Mermaidremake is widely regarded as a flop because of its high production budget and marketing cost. These expenses meanThe Little Mermaidgenerated relatively low profits, but some sources claim the film lost money for Disney.
Despite these comparisons, there is reason to be optimistic.Maleficentopened domestically with $69.4 million and earned $758.5 million worldwide, enough to merit a sequel, though the second film reportedly failed to gross enough money to profit. More recently, Disney’sMufasa: The Lion King, a prequel centering on the early years of Mufasa and Scar, stunned many people when it opened alongsideSonic the Hedgehog 3and placed second with $35.4 million. However,Mufasa: The Lion King’s box office fortunesturned around in the ensuing weeks, eventually outgrossingSonic 3with $671.1 million worldwide. PerhapsSnow Whitecould have similar long-term box office success despite opening weekend numbers being on the lower end.
Snow Whitemay have some work to do to earn the audience’s money. Right-wing critics havetargeted the film for merely casting Zegler as Snow Whiteand were further enraged when the actress criticized the original animated film. However, there are legitimate concerns about the film, particularly after the firstSnow Whitetrailer was released to much criticism primarily directed toward the CG dwarfs. Still, the box office projections don’t indicate the film is doomed to flop, which may be reason enough to rest easy given the current reputation of Disney’s live-action remakes.
Disney’sSnow Whitereleases in theaters on Jul 04, 2025.
Snow White
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.
