Disney’s Snow White made various changes to the 1937 animated classic, but some of these made the live-action version better. There are various ongoing trends in the film industry, and one that Disney has been taking advantage of in recent years is live-action remakes of the studio’s animated movies. While some have succeeded, many others turned out to be major disappointments and failures, but this isn’t stopping Disney from continuing to make live-action remakes. The latest one is Snow White, based on the animated classic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Directed by Marc Webb, Snow White has the same premise as the animated version, but with some key changes and additions. Snow White tells the story of the title princess (played by Rachel Zegler), who, after her stepmother, simply known as the Evil Queen (Gal Gadot), orders her murder, flees into the forest. There she finds refuge with seven kindhearted dwarfs, but she wants to save the kingdom from the Evil Queen. It was expected that Snow White would make changes to the animated classic, but some of these made the live-action version even better.

Snow White’s Family Backstory Is Better Explored In The Live-Action Remake

Snow White Briefly Features The Princess’ Parents

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs doesn’t explore Snow White’s backstory, and instead, it jumps straight into the Evil Queen reigning and Snow White being forced to work as a scullery maid. The 2025 live-action remake takes some time during its first act to go back in time and take a look at Snow White’s life before she became an orphan. Unsurprisingly, the king, queen, and Snow White were loved by the kingdom’s people, as they were kind, fair, and honest, and always looked to give them the best.

Unfortunately, the queen passed away, and some time later, the woman who would go on to become the Evil Queen arrived at the castle. The king fell in love with her and they got married, but the Evil Queen sent the king to fight to defend the kingdom. This is later revealed to have been a trap to get the king killed so the Evil Queen could take over and rule as she pleased. The Evil Queen then forced Snow White to work as a scullery maid and never leave the castle, leading the people to think she had abandoned them.

There’s A Bit More Story To The Dwarfs In Snow White’s Live-Action Movie

We Learn A Bit More About The Dwarfs

In both versions the focus is, of course, Snow White and her escape from the castle and the Evil Queen, but the live-action remake adds a bit more to the dwarfs. The 2025 Snow White movie reveals that the dwarfs are very old – hundreds of years old, actually, and on top of that, they have some special powers they don’t have in the animated version.

The live-action dwarfs can generate light from their hands, which comes in handy while working at the mine. In addition to that, it’s revealed that Dopey doesn’t talk because he’s bullied by the rest, who make fun of him all the time. Although Snow White doesn’t really go into the backstory of the dwarfs, these additions to their story are some big improvements.

The Evil Queen’s Link To The Magic Mirror Is Revealed

The Magic Mirror Does More Than Boost The Queen’s Ego

In the animated version of Snow White, the Evil Queen asks her Magic Mirror every day who is “the fairest of them all”, with the Mirror replying that it’s her, which is why Snow White is safe for a long time – until the Mirror tells her that the young princess is now the fairest of all. This is the same in the live-action remake, but this version shows what the connection between the mirror and the Evil Queen really is.

The Mirror is revealed to be the source of the Evil Queen’s powers.

In both movies, the Evil Queen uses magic, but the live-action version establishes her as an enchantress. On top of that, at the end of Snow White, the Mirror is revealed to be the source of the Evil Queen’s powers, which explains why she took it with her into the castle and her connection to it. When the Evil Queen destroys the mirror, she’s turned into glass and disappears into a vortex inside the Mirror before it repairs itself, trapping her inside.

The Evil Queen’s Horrible Reign Doesn’t Go Unnoticed In The Kingdom

Some People Are Willing To Fight Her

One of the questions that inevitably arises when rewatching Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs as an adult is why the people of the kingdom didn’t rise against the Evil Queen nor question what happened to Snow White. The live-action remake does take the time to show the bad conditions of the kingdom under the Evil Queen’s reign, and how the people believed that Snow White abandoned them. However, they are led by the princess herself against the Evil Queen.

Before Snow White reminds the people of how the kingdom used to be under her parents’ reign and inspires them to rise against the Evil Queen, Jonathan (Andrew Burnap) was already doing what he could. Jonathan is the leader of a group of thieves that go against the Evil Queen’s reign in the name of the king, though they also believed that the princess had abandoned her people and didn’t care for them anymore.

Jonathan Is A More Well-Rounded Character Than The Prince In 2025’s Snow White

Sorry, Prince, But Jonathan Is Better

Speaking of Jonathan, he’s one of the best additions to Snow White. The 2025 remake doesn’t include the character of the prince, and, instead, it introduces Jonathan. As mentioned above, Jonathan is a rebel and the leader of a group of thieves who are against the Evil Queen and her reign. Jonathan’s family are his fellow thieves, and it’s understood that he had a tough upbringing due to the Evil Queen’s takeover.

This gives Jonathan a much bigger role in Snow White than the one the prince had in the 1937 movie, and thus he has a lot more screen time. Despite being the main character’s love interest, the prince barely appears in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, appearing briefly at the beginning, during Snow White’s musical number at the well, and again at the end, when he kisses her and they leave the forest together. Because of this, the prince doesn’t really have a story, and nothing is known about him, not even his name.

Snow White & Jonathan’s Romance Is A Lot More Believable

Snow White Takes Time To Develop Their Romance

Continuing the topic of Jonathan, his romance with Snow White is better developed and thus a lot more believable than the prince and Snow White’s relationship in the animated movie. Snow White and Jonathan have a rocky start, with the former coming across him at the castle while he steals food from the kitchen. In their next encounter in the forest, their personalities clash, but they eventually learn to listen and understand each other – and that’s when they start to bond and their romance begins.

By the time Jonathan escapes from the Evil Queen’s dungeon and returns to the forest to reunite with Snow White, it’s believable that he will break the spell and help her stand against the Evil Queen. As mentioned above, the Prince only appears twice in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and very briefly, with the movie explaining their romance as “love at first sight”, but it’s still not very believable.

Snow White Doesn’t Stay In “Sleeping Death” For Long In The Live-Action Version

Thankfully, It Ends Quickly

In Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Snow White falls into “Sleeping Death” and stays in that state for months, with the dwarfs building a glass and gold coffin for her and looking after her all that time. In the live-action remake, Snow White also falls into “Sleeping Death”, but it doesn’t last long. It’s unknown exactly how much time passes between Snow White biting the apple and Jonathan breaking the spell, but it isn’t much, and the dwarfs don’t build a coffin for her.

Snow White’s Arc Is More Layered Than The Original’s

Snow White Actually Has A Purpose In The Live-Action Remake

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a classic and that will never change, but the main character isn’t fully developed and her story is very simple. In the animated movie, Snow White is the sweet and kindhearted princess who is forced to escape into the forest when the Evil Queen orders her murder. Snow White stays with the dwarfs and they become a family, although briefly, and then comes her encounter with the Evil Queen as the old hag and her happy ending with the prince – and that’s pretty much her entire story.

In Snow White, the princess is also kindhearted and sweet, but she’s also strong, determined, and brave. Snow White learned from her parents how to be kind and give to the people of the kingdom, but she also learned to fight for what was right. After recovering from the stress and fear of the Evil Queen looking to kill her, Snow White sets out to confront the Evil Queen, and for the rest of the movie, she balances her soft-hearted side with her braver one, which makes her triumph over the Evil Queen even better.