Alright, grab your coffee, because we need to talk about Disney. Specifically, their latest live-action remake, “Snow White.” If you haven’t heard, it’s a massive, reported $170 million flop. Yeah, you read that right. One hundred seventy *million* dollars down the drain.
Now, I’m all for creative freedom, but when a company that charges upwards of $150 a day for a park ticket starts hemorrhaging cash on movies, it makes you wonder where that money’s going to come from next, doesn’t it? Spoiler alert: probably our pockets.
The news report from Fox Business laid it all out. This movie apparently cost a mind-boggling $336.5 million to make. Let that sink in. For comparison, that’s more than “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” or even “Beauty and the Beast” which actually grossed $1.3 billion. They spent all that cash, even with a hefty $64.9 million reimbursement from the UK government (because it was filmed there, which is how we even got these numbers, usually they keep it secret!). Even with that ‘magic touch,’ they still lost nearly $170 million after all was said and done with theater splits and everything.
So, how did Disney manage to turn a beloved classic into one of the “biggest box office bombs in the history of the movie business,” as OutKick put it? Well, it wasn’t just bad luck. This project was riddled with controversy from the get-go.
First, there was Peter Dinklage, who rightly pointed out that remaking a “f—ing backwards story about seven dwarfs living in a cave together” might not be the most progressive move, despite casting a diverse lead. Disney’s initial response? They reportedly considered replacing the dwarfs with “multiracial and gender-mixed ‘magical creatures’.” Seriously? They later scrapped that for CGI mythological dwarfs, but the damage was kind of done. It felt like they were trying to fix a problem that didn’t exist, while creating new ones.
Then, there’s the lead actress, Rachel Zegler. She stirred up her own pot of controversy, reportedly criticizing the original 1937 film and making some pretty strong political statements online. Look, everyone’s entitled to their opinion, but when you’re the face of a beloved character that families cherish, maybe talking smack about the original isn’t the best PR strategy. Especially when that original is what made Disney, well, *Disney*.
It feels like Disney lost sight of who their audience is: families. The working-class families who save up for years to take their kids to the parks, buy the merchandise, and watch the movies. We want good stories, familiar characters, and a bit of magic. We don’t want to feel like we’re being lectured or that the stories we grew up with are being disrespected.
This $170 million loss isn’t just a number on a spreadsheet for Disney execs. It’s a symptom of a bigger problem. And when big companies make big mistakes like this, history tells us they find ways to recoup that money. That means higher ticket prices, more expensive food, and maybe even cutting corners elsewhere in the parks or on future projects.
What’s the takeaway for us? Be smart with your money. Don’t just throw cash at every new Disney release or experience. Demand value. If the content isn’t hitting the mark, vote with your wallet. Let them know that we, the paying customers, expect better. Because until they feel it where it hurts – their bottom line – these kinds of “creative missteps” will keep happening, and we’ll be the ones footing the bill in the long run.
Have you noticed Disney’s priorities shifting? Do you think these movie flops impact the park experience? Let us know what you think!
