Snow White is easily the softest Disney Princess, who is the first and original Princess. Considering its popularity, Disney recently released a live-action remake of Snow White, which has been poisoned by controversy.
Aside from the criticism over Rachel Zegler’s casting, the movie couldn’t catch a break. Considering filming was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the SAG-AFTRA strikes, and a fire on set, it led to a massive budget that the film couldn’t earn back. Now the film has added a new controversy to its long list, as Lebanon has banned Disney’s Snow White from theaters because of Israeli actress Gal Gadot, per Deadline.
Snow White cast two outspoken, politically opposed actresses. Although the casting happened before the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza war, the conflict also affected the movie. Rachel Zegler has been very outspoken about her support for Palestine, which Disney reportedly tried to turn around as the reason why the film failed, while Gal Gadot isi an Israeli-born, former IDF soldier.
Now Ahmad Hajjar, Lebanon’s Interior Minister, recommended the film’s ban from theaters, according to local newspaper An-Nahar. Zegler plays the titular princess, while Gadot plays the Evil Queen. This continues a trend in Lebanon, which previously banned Gadot’s Wonder Woman and Death on the Nile.
Gadot has been supporting Israel since the war’s outbreak on Oct. 7, 2023. During an impassioned speech at the Anti-Defamation League’s summit in 2024, she said: «Never did I imagine that on the streets of the United States, and different cities around the world, we would see people not condemning Hamas, but celebrating, justifying and cheering on a massacre of Jews.»
Snow White has been the target of a boycott from BDS (a non-violent Palestinian-led movement) and PACBI (Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel) following the release of the teaser trailer in 2024 due to Gadot’s pro-Israel stance. The actress reportedly received death threats because of her stance, which led to Disney providing additional security for her. Other groups from Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, Tunisia, the UAE, and Egypt also called for a regional boycott of the film because of Gadot’s involvement.
Most recently, Gadot addressed the Israel-Gaza conflict in February 2025 when talking to Harper’s Bazaar Spain. She highlighted her anti-war stance and called for a diplomatic resolution. «I know it sounds cliché, but just as they are teaching us to hate, by increasing antisemitism, we can also teach them to love. I want to believe that love is the force that moves the world. War is a defeat for everyone. Hate is horrible. It is toxic for the outside world and for the hater.»
Snow White Will Flop in Theaters
With a massive $270 million budget due to all the delays, on top of the regular production costs, Snow White would’ve needed over $550 million to break even. However, the movie is nowhere near covering its investment, let alone making a profit. Since its release in theaters, Snow White has only grossed $182.6 million worldwide. This will lead to several hundred million in losses for Disney.
Snow White was also plagued by poor reviews and review-bombing. Critics gave the film a «rotten» score of 40%, with the audience hitting the film with 1-star reviews. However, on Rotten Tomatoes, the movie has an exciting 72% audience score on the Popcornmeter from the verified ratings, which tells a completely different story from the 1.6 review bombing on IMDb.
Snow White is currently playing in theaters.
