Rachel Zegler’s political tweets and clashes with Disney fuel Snow White’s box office struggles. Was the backlash avoidable?

Rachel Zegler, Donald Trump

Hollywood’s latest live-action Disney remake, Snow White, was supposed to be a glittering triumph! We all thought that it would be a fresh take on a beloved fairytale with a rising star at its helm. But now the film is struggling at the box office, with its leading lady, Rachel Zegler, facing intense public scrutiny.

Rachel ZeglerRachel Zegler in Snow White | Credits: Walt Disney Studios

With tweets about Donald Trump resurfacing and Disney executives’ wrath, the past couple of weeks haven’t been smooth for Zegler. But what exactly did she say, and why is it causing such a storm?

Rachel Zegler’s controversial tweets about Donald Trump

Rachel ZeglerRachel Zegler in Snow White | Credits: Walt Disney Studios

Long before Snow White hit theaters, Rachel Zegler’s presence on social media was unfiltered (though not much has changed in recent times). Her old tweet from 2020 has resurfaced where she’s made a disturbing comment about Donald Trump and his daughter.

The crude remark has ignited debate, especially amongst the conservative audience. As per sources from Fox News, in another post, after Trump’s 2024 election victory, Zegler once again targeted the politician, and this time, even his supporters.

Disney reportedly had to intervene and hire a social media guru who would monitor her online activities ahead of Snow White’s release. So Zegler later posted an apology saying, “I let my emotions get the best of me.” 

However, the damage may have already been done because Snow White is underperforming at the box office. So, people are questioning whether it’s her political statements that made a significant portion of the audience boycott the film.

Snow White’s producer’s son blames Rachel Zegler for film’s failure

Rachel ZeglerRachel Zegler in Snow White | Credits: Walt Disney Studios

The fallout from Rachel Zegler’s online controversies didn’t just spark public debates, but as per sources, Disney executives had to get involved to reprimand the young actress (via Variety). Jonah Platt, son of Snow White’s producer Marc Platt, accused Zegler of being “narcissistic” and hurting the film’s success. In a since-deleted comment on Instagram, he reportedly said:

Yeah, my dad, the producer of [an] enormous piece of Disney IP with hundreds of millions of dollars on the line, had to leave his family to fly across the country to reprimand his 20-year-old employee for dragging her personal politics into the middle of promoting the movie. 

He also argued that when the actress expressed her own opinions about the film, she “hijacked” the narrative surrounding it. According to him, she put the livelihoods of thousands of crew members at risk. Yet, some argue that Snow White would have flopped without Zegler’s political posts and commentary about the fairytale.

Snow White is currently playing in theaters.