Rachel Zegler admits she was terrified of the Snow White cartoon as a child—because clearly, a 1937 animation is the stuff of nightmares.

Even before Disney’s Snow White hit the theaters, people were petrified of how Rachel Zegler’s controversial comments surrounding the OG storyline would impact the box office. So now that the movie finally arrived on the big screen, on March 21, netizens are tracing back to Zegler’s remarks.

Rachel Zegler in Disney’s Snow White | image: Disney

One of the most baffling comments that caught our attention was Rachel Zegler reflecting on her fear of the movie and the character, as a child. Seated beside her co-star Gal Gadot, the West Side Story actress noted how the OG 1937 animation made her feel, way before she was even cast as the titular character.

Rachel Zegler was frightened by the original 1937 Snow White movie 

Gal Gadot and Rachel Zegler in Snow White (2025) | image: Disney

For most people, the 1937 animated Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs might be a nostalgic trip down Disney memory lane—but not for Rachel Zegler. No, because for the actress the animated story was filled with nightmares. At least that’s what she said, during a promotional interview with EW, alongside her co-star Gal Gadot.

In the interview that quickly went viral and controversial, Rachel Zegler revealed that she found the OG movie downright terrifying as a child. The actress mentioned watching the movie once and then visiting the Disney theme park. Well, that’s all that it took for Zegler to be terrified of the cartoon character.

I was scared of the original cartoon. I think I watched it once and then I never picked it up again. Like I’m being so serious. I watched it once and then I went on the ride in Disney World. It was called Snow White’s Scary Adventures. 

Doesn’t sound like something little kids would like. Was terrified of it, never revisited Snow White again. So I watched it for the first time in 16-17 years when I was doing this film. 

Although Rachel Zegler elaborated on her experience watching the 1937 movie, she didn’t clarify exactly which part of the film left her terrified for years. Well, the Evil Queen was a little spooky, but fearing the entire movie was a bit too bold of a confession from Zegler. But her fear of Disney classics wasn’t the only thing that sparked controversy.

Rachel Zegler’s controversial comments about the OG storyline 

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937) | image: Disney

Following Rachel Zegler’s interview with EW, several other comments of the actress went viral, where she appeared criticizing the OG movie and its storyline, which has been appealing to a generation of kids, for decades. One such interview took place with Variety at the Disney Fan Club’s D23 Expo, where Zegler claimed,

I just mean that it’s no longer 1937. [Snow White] is not going to be saved by the prince, and she’s not going to be dreaming about true love. She’s going to be dreaming about becoming the leader she knows she can be and that her late father told her that she could be if she was fearless, fair, brave, and true.

Okay, so after claiming how they rewrote the OG Snow White storyline to offer a modern and more feminist take, Rachel Zegler went on to criticize the whole “girl waiting for a prince” narrative. During an interview with Extra TV at the D23 Expo, the actress called it “weird” for the titular character to fall in love “with a guy who literally stalks her”.

Now, while Rachel Zegler believed her comments and her 2025 live-action film were supposed to be “progressive”, not everyone agreed with the actress. The majority of fans who have watched the original classic and have grown to love it slammed Zegler for her pseudo-feminist remarks.

Snow White is currently running at your nearest theaters.