Gal Gadot skips European ‘premiere' of Snow White film after Gaza controversy

Telegraph

13-03-2025

Hollywood star Gal Gadot skipped the European 'premiere' of Disney's Snow White remake after the film was plagued by controversies including conflicting views between cast members over Gaza.
The Disney live-action remake, which will be released in UK cinemas on March 21, was shown at a pared-back screening in Spain on Wednesday night with only one star in attendance.
While Israeli actress Gadot, who plays the Evil Queen, was notably missing, the Columbian-American actress Rachel Zegler, who plays Snow White, performed for a modest crowd in a remote castle north-west of Madrid.
Zegler, who has been at the centre of the marketing campaign for a film beset by controversy, was filmed singing Waiting on a Wish at the screening, branded by the entertainment giant as the film's 'European event' rather than a traditional premiere.
Disney has decided to pare back the Hollywood premiere of the film in Los Angeles on Saturday amid a string of controversies.
Zegler, who previously said she has been 'public with a pro-Palestine stance since 2021', was pictured in attendance at the castle in the city of Segovia alongside the film's director Marc Webb.
Meanwhile Gadot, who spent two years serving in the Israel Defence Forces and has been outspoken about her support for the country since the Oct 7 attacks by Hamas, is only expected to attend the LA event this weekend.
Webb and Zegler posed on a red carpet on Wednesday that included a select few local Spanish influencers and families from the small city rather than the usual list of major news outlets and throngs of fans.
The absence of other cast and crew members was apparent when the small crowd gathered at the Alcázar of Segovia, which is speculated to have served as an inspiration behind the castle in Disney's 1937 beloved animated original.
It marked one of the first promotional occasions for the film and comes just a few days before the main event, which will also not feature the typical red carpet that sees dozens of media outlets interviewing the cast and producers.
Instead, coverage of Saturday's premiere of the $269 million (£208 million) film at El Capitan Theatre in LA will be limited to photographers and an in-house crew, according to Variety.
Among the 'VIP' attendees at Wednesday's event was a Spanish Snow White movie fan account, which has 3,735 followers on Instagram, and Nuria Adraos, a Spanish make-up artist who boasts 815,000 followers.
They were joined by Almu Carrion, a Valencia influencer who described being dined at a Snow White themed dinner that included Pandora freebies and a small screening of the film.
The modest European event comes after the film has been beset by controversy since the start, including scrutiny over both Gadot and Zelger's casting.
Critics branded the 23-year-old Latina actress as a 'woke' choice for Snow White.
She later felt the need to clarify on X that she would not be 'bleaching' her skin for the role – and pro-Palestine activists took issue with Gadot's vocal support of her birthplace and called for the film to be boycotted.
Elsewhere, problems have also arisen over the film's approach to the seven dwarfs, with Peter Dinklage, the Game of Thrones actor, who has dwarfism, expressing surprise that Disney would remake a 'backward story about seven dwarfs living in a cave together'.
Disney also sparked some criticism among the dwarfism community for then opting to use CGI for the dwarfs instead of using actors with the condition.
It came after the company insisted it had been consulting with members of the dwarfism community throughout the early stages of production to 'avoid reinforcing stereotypes' from the original animation.
Zegler also came under fire for her criticism of Donald Trump's re-election last year, saying: 'May Trump supporters and Trump voters and Trump himself never know peace.'
The actress, who later backtracked and apologised for her comments, added that Mr Trump's return to the White House was an indication of a 'deep sickness in this country'.
She also insisted that in the new live-action film, the Disney Princess will have a feminist spin and will not 'be dreaming about true love' as she does in the 1937 animation.
Zegler said in an interview: 'It's no longer 1937… She's not going to be saved by the prince… She's dreaming about becoming the leader she knows she can be.'