When it comes to movies and TV shows in recent years, it’s safe to say the narrative has changed. Especially with the writing of younger characters. Many new stereotypes have been born, laughed at, and disregarded at the expense of the younger generations. All that many film companies seem to think about is staying “woke.” But what does this really mean when we’re talking about remaking stories?
There have definitely been a few hits of remade movies, such as “Little Women” and “Hidden Figures.” Then, in May of 2023, Disney released “The Little Mermaid.” Jennifer Malki, a Senior Integrated Producer currently living in Los Angeles, loved the “Little Mermaid” remake. When talking about the changes made to the story, she stated, “I liked how they made Eric’s dad a mom instead, […] they never do that.” She continued to say “They’re introducing biracial couples also, which is huge.” I personally believe that this movie was very well done, truly bringing the original story to real life.
Now, Disney is filming a new live-action princess movie: a remake of the first ever Disney princess movie, “Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs.” As someone who identifies as Latina, I was over the moon when I found out one of my favorite Disney princesses was going to be played by Rachel Zegler, a Latina actress. Then, Disney 1923 (D23) (Disney’s official fan club expo) happened, and Rachel Zegler appeared on the red carpet. That night, we got Zegler preening on and on about how Snow White is “not going to be dreaming about true love,” as she said during an interview with Variety at the expo, and how outdated the movie and story is.
My question is this: By society’s standards, what movie from before 2014 isn’t at least a little bit outdated? This is 1937 we’re talking about, only 17 years after women were granted the right to vote. Of course it’s outdated, the almost 17 year age gap between Snow White and her prince makes me nauseous. However, telling people a movie is completely outdated because of the fact that she falls in love is not only misleading, but disappointing. Falling in love is something that happens everyday. Love does not make you weak, and saying that it does, especially about a woman, is the same as a backhanded compliment.
During a conversation about the “Snow White” remake with Malki, we talked a lot about how an actress changing the story is something she’d never really seen before, especially with Rachel Zegler’s interactions with the press at the D23 Expo. In reference to the changing of her character, Jennifer said, “did she not sign on to a script? Because I’m sure that’s been made.” When asked how she felt about the changes to the love aspect of the story, specifically speaking about switching true love for independence, she said, “there’s no reason you can’t have both. It’s like saying that you can’t be in a relationship and have a career. That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”
The notion that Snow White doesn’t need a prince to save her, because she’s not going to be dreaming about true love, implies that romance is a weak point for a woman to possess in comparison to being headstrong and career driven. When in reality, women can have both. They don’t need to choose between being ambitious and having true love. My biggest dream is to move to New York and own a business in Manhattan, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to get married and have a family.
Osmond Montegomery, a sophomore at Franklin said, “some of these shows are displaying these princesses and everything, and I hear people talk about it like ‘Oh this girl just completely left her whole life just because she fell in love with a prince,’ and I feel like that’s […] super detrimental for kids to learn.” He continued on to say, “they should just come up with something more original than redoing old things and making them more woke. I think if they made something more heartfelt, it would resonate with a lot of other people.” Then again, just because there can be both, doesn’t mean there can’t be one without the other. In this case, it’s a fairytale love story, and if you want to make a new movie about a woman aspiring to be a hero, that’s amazing. Write new stories for new women, women who aren’t princesses in the thirties.
Many people online have been using an argument comparing Robert Pattinson and Harrison Ford to Rachel Zegler, and I honestly understand where they’re coming from. These are two white men hating on the projects that have made them millions of dollars, and still being beloved by their fans, versus a young Latina actress talking badly about a project based on a story from over eighty years ago, and getting barrelled by the internet. It’s a good comparison and a good argument. There is no bashing Zegler for talking bad about her movie, people are mad because the weight of her words is far heavier than Robert Pattinson saying he didn’t like the vampire teenage romance he starred in. This is about Zegler picking up a project, then putting women in yet another box. “If the story already portrayed that Snow White was anti-love, she would not be receiving this much hate,” said Hailey Dickinson, another sophomore at Franklin.
Elle Fanning, who played Aurora in the 2014 “Maleficent” film, said it best: “Aurora’s a fighter, but in a different way. I think there’s a strength in her femininity and softness, and there’s nothing wrong with her wanting to be a mother and be married. I think there’s a beauty in that, and that is still strong.” In this particular interview, she talks about how there are certain princesses where being a fighter is already a part of their character, but Aurora is not one of them. Neither is Snow White, there is no reason to be ashamed to dream of love, because almost everybody else is doing the exact same thing. 86% of Americans believe in true love, and 67% of them say they’ve experienced it, according to CBS News. Defining someone’s independence shouldn’t rely on their capability to fall in love.
Rachel Zegler doesn’t need to be canceled; she needs media training. Especially with the way the world is right now, anything has the ability to make someone mad. Reimagining stories that are beloved to millions of people shouldn’t be this difficult, and making films less oppressive towards women shouldn’t mean comparing a woman’s independence to her potential love story.
Equality is what women have spent years fighting for. We’ve always wanted to have the same opportunities as men, but that never meant we wanted to be exactly what men are. I can’t speak for all women, but I’ve spent years looking back on my life, wondering if it would have been different if I was a man. But looking back also meant seeing the beauty of being a woman. We all have the ability to relate to each other because at one point in time we have all been seen as “just a woman.” These experiences have led to us being stronger, smarter, and more calculated. But at heart, there’s a softness that comes with the little girl living inside every single one of us. Maybe it was a little girl who loved playing with her Barbies, or maybe it was a little girl who looked like a boy but never felt like one. We owe it to them to not only be as strong as we can, but fight for everything that they dreamed of, including love. Because we should be able to have it all.
