Trouble is a brewin’ for Disney‘s Snow White in its box office debut.
After getting stung by critics and not-so-great audience scores, Disney’s live-action remake of its iconic 1937 animated film may only reap $45 million in its domestic box office debut. That’s on par with Tim Burton’s Dumbo, which was considered a major disappointment.
The female-skewing Snow White will still have no trouble winning the frame and is hoping to emulate the pace and tempo of Disney’s Christmas tentpole Mufasa: The Lion King, which debuted to $35 million on its way to sprinting past $700 million globally.
Starring Rachel Zegler in the titular role and Gal Gadot as the Evil Queen, Snow White had been tracking to open at $50 million, although Disney had been conservative in putting out a range of $45 million and $55 million. Globally, the film still hopes to clear $100 million in its launch.
Snow White is the rare Disney live-action remake that earned a B+ CinemaScore from audiences; almost every film has received some variation of an A.
Directed by Marc Webb, Snow White arrived in theaters loaded with baggage after being buffeted by delays and controversy, beginning with a backlash over casting Zegler in the titular role because of the color of her skin (she is of Colombian descent). She’s also made no secret of her support of the Palestinian people. Gadot, who is Israeli, has come under scrutiny for her remarks regarding the Gaza conflict.
In terms of other Disney live-action princess remakes, Beauty and the Beast astounded when opening to $174.6 million domestically in mid-March 2017, not adjusted for inflation. In the spring of 2015, Cinderella debuted to $67.9 million domestically; Maleficent launched to $69 million in May 2014 (the sequel, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, stalled at $37 million).
While Snow White is one of the best-known Disney princesses among adults 45 years and older, she is far less known among younger demos — not to mention that Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is nearly 90 years old. The animated Beauty and the Beast was released in 1991, and generations of kids grew up watching the film at home. And Cinderella has remained a perennial favorite among Disney princess fans since the animated film hit theaters in 1950.
The weekend is even worse for others.
Also opening is Robert De Niro mob movie The Alto Knights. It was one of the first movies greenlit by David Zaslav after Warner Bros. Discovery was formed in 2022, and stars De Niro in the dual roles of infamous New York City mob bosses Frank Costello and Vito Genovese. The pic, directed by Barry Levinson from a script by Nicholas Pileggi, will also get some PLF showings. It’s looking to open to just $3 million.
And actor Jonathan Majors’ hoped-for comeback pic Magazine Dreams appears to be DOA. The boxing drama may not even crack $900,000 in its debut in roughly 800 theaters. Searchlight dropped the project following Majors’ legal troubles; the Sundance darling was later picked up by Oscar-winning distributor Tom Ortenberg via his Briarcliff Entertainment.