Disney’s live-action Snow White, released on March 15, 2025, was billed as a bold reinvention of the 1937 animated classic—a $270 million gamble to modernize a fairy tale for a new generation. Instead, it has become a box office catastrophe, limping to an $87 million global opening and sinking further in subsequent weeks, far short of the $800–850 million needed to break even. At the heart of the fallout stands Rachel Zegler, the 23-year-old actress cast as Snow White, whose outspoken persona has drawn relentless fire. Now, conservative commentator Megyn Kelly has entered the fray, reportedly “destroying” Zegler in a scathing critique over the film’s disaster. But what did Kelly say, and how does this clash reflect the broader cultural storm engulfing Disney’s latest misadventure? Let’s dive into the saga, pulling from web insights and objective analysis to unpack this high-stakes confrontation.

The trouble began long before Snow White hit theaters. Zegler’s casting in 2021 ignited controversy, with critics decrying her Latina heritage as a mismatch for the “skin as white as snow” princess. She countered with defiance, pitching a feminist Snow White who dreams of leadership, not love—a vision she doubled down on in a 2022 Extra TV interview, slamming the original prince as a “stalker” and the 1937 film as “weird.” The backlash was swift, with fans accusing her of disrespecting a cherished classic. Production hiccups didn’t help: a set fire, COVID delays, and a scrapped plan to replace the seven dwarves with CGI “magical creatures” (reversed after dwarfism advocates like Peter Dinklage objected) kept the film in chaos. By the time the August 2024 trailer dropped—120 million views in 24 hours—Zegler’s X post, “and always remember, free Palestine,” turned a promotional win into a geopolitical minefield, clashing with co-star Gal Gadot’s Israeli roots and prompting Disney to hire a “social media guru” to rein her in.

The film’s premiere was a muted affair, downsized to a press-free screening at a Spanish castle, signaling Disney’s dread of tough questions. Opening weekend confirmed the worst: $43 million domestically, a 41% Rotten Tomatoes score, and a 53% second-week drop. Critics trashed Gadot’s “flat” Evil Queen and the script’s incoherence, while audiences—perhaps weary of Disney’s remake fatigue or Zegler’s polarizing presence—stayed away. Her November 2024 Instagram rant, “F*** Donald Trump” and “May Trump supporters never know peace,” post-Trump’s re-election, added fuel to the fire, alienating a conservative chunk of Disney’s family base (37% of whom lean right, per EnTelligence). The film became a culture-war punching bag, with “woke” critiques drowning out its fairy-tale roots.

Megyn Kelly, the 54-year-old former Fox News anchor turned SiriusXM podcast powerhouse, pounced. On her March 25, 2025, episode of The Megyn Kelly Show, titled “Disney’s Snow White Failure: Rachel Zegler’s Reckoning,” Kelly unleashed a blistering attack. Clips on X show her calling Zegler “a pig” and “irresponsible,” blaming her political outbursts and “arrogant” trashing of the original for the flop. “This woman hates more than half the country—the half that just elected Donald Trump—and Disney thought she’d carry a $270 million film?” Kelly fumed, per posts from @MegynKellyShow. She contrasted Zegler’s behavior with Disney’s firing of Gina Carano from The Mandalorian for less inflammatory posts, decrying the studio’s “hypocrisy.” “She has to go,” Kelly insisted. “Redo the film. This is a disaster.”

Kelly’s takedown went viral. The YouTube segment racked up 1.5 million views in days, outpacing Zegler’s own opening-day Instagram post (800k likes). On X, @bizlovesports hailed it as “Megyn Kelly DESTROYS Rachel Zegler,” while @SirGeneTX shared the link with glee. Her fans lauded the “evisceration,” with @RuggerioJoyce later citing Kelly’s follow-up claim: “Zegler’s career is DONE.” Critics, though, saw it as opportunism—@writtenbysara sniped, “Megyn punching down at a 23-year-old to stay relevant is pathetic.” The clash trended, amplifying Snow White’s infamy as “Rachel Zegler” and “Megyn Kelly” spiked on Google Trends through March 30.

Was Kelly’s critique a “destruction”? It was brutal, no doubt. She wielded stats—$87 million vs. Dumbo’s $45 million opening—and painted Zegler as a spoiled diva who torched Disney’s legacy. Her November 2024 salvo, demanding Zegler’s firing over the Trump rant, set the stage, but this March assault tied it to the box office bloodbath. Yet, it echoed existing noise—YouTube’s Teatime with Teana had already dubbed Zegler a “disaster,” and X posts like @EndymionYT’s “Disney throws Zegler to the wolves” pre-dated Kelly’s rant. Her platform (6.2 million X followers) gave it heft, but the “destroy” label leans on hyperbole—Zegler’s still standing, albeit battered.

Zegler’s response? Silence on Kelly, but her March 25 Instagram post—“life-changing,” thanking the Snow White team—skipped Gadot and ignored the storm. Her fans fought back, trending “We Stand With Rachel” and slamming Kelly as a “bully.” David Ehrlich tweeted, “Megyn gloating over a young star’s flop is peak 2025 cynicism.” Disney, meanwhile, pivoted to Zootopia 2 hype, leaving Zegler to twist. Insiders told Variety the studio blamed her “erratic” behavior—her Palestine post spiked Gadot’s death threats, costing extra security—but no firing’s confirmed. Kelly’s “redo the film” demand is fantasy; Snow White’s done, and Disney’s licking its wounds.

This isn’t just about Zegler’s PR blunders. The film’s failure reflects deeper rot: Gadot’s panned acting, a script that pleased no one, and a market tired of Disney’s live-action cash grabs (Pinocchio, Dumbo). Zegler’s politics hurt—her Trump tirade likely shaved millions off an already shaky haul—but she’s not the sole villain. Kelly’s critique, while sharp, sidesteps these systemic flops, zeroing in on Zegler as a woke scapegoat. It’s catnip for her audience, who’ve long cheered her anti-PC crusades (her 2018 NBC exit over a blackface flap didn’t dim her star). Her 2024 book, Unfiltered, rails against Hollywood’s “virtue signaling”—Snow White fits her narrative perfectly.

The culture-war lens magnifies it all. Zegler, a Gen Z progressive, embodies diversity and defiance—her casting and feminist spin were DEI wins for some, “woke” poison for others. Kelly, a conservative firebrand, thrives on skewering such figures, framing Snow White as a cautionary tale of liberalism run amok. X reflects the divide: @JasonBaran5 cheered Kelly’s “truth bombs,” while @nypost’s earlier “pig” headline (November 2024) resurfaced to fan flames. Zegler’s Palestine stance and Trump hate made her a dual target—progressives laud her “courage,” conservatives see a spoiled brat. The film’s a casualty of this polarization, its fairy-tale magic lost to ideological trench warfare.

Did Kelly “destroy” Zegler? Not literally—Zegler’s career’s dented, not dead. Her Hunger Games prequel ($349 million) and MCU rumors suggest resilience, though Snow White’s stench clings. Kelly’s rant landed blows—amplifying Zegler’s role in the fiasco—but it’s less a KO than a loud echo of a pile-on. Disney’s the real loser, its remake bubble burst. For Zegler, it’s a brutal lesson in Hollywood’s spotlight; for Kelly, another win in her culture-war playbook. The mirror on the wall shows a tale of clashing egos and a studio in crisis—less “destruction,” more a noisy chapter in 2025’s ongoing saga of art versus outrage.