Having been cast to portray the Disney princess for a live-action reboot movie, the 'West Side Story' actress is seen walking around the set while wearing the character's iconic gown.
- May 23, 2022
AceShowbiz - Rachel Zegler has channeled her inner Disney princess. On Thursday, May 19, months after her casting for Disney's live-action movie of "Snow White" sparked controversy, the "West Side Story" actress was spotted for the first time as Snow White since she began filming.
In photos spreading online, the Golden Globe-winning actress was seen walking around the movie set in London. She was wearing a gown that features an open neckline, long puff sleeves and blue bodice attached to long yellow tulle skirt. The dress she wore was almost identical to the one seen in the original 1937 animation, except her puff sleeve for the live-action appeared to be longer.
During the stroll, Rachel was also seen sporting a pair of UGG boots. The 21-year-old actress also had clips on her bob hair to keep it in place.
Rachel was met with backlash soon after it was announced that she will lead the live-action remake back in 2021. Harsh criticism came in forms of questions why she, a Latina, was cast for the role. Many pointed out that the character was traditionally portrayed by white actresses, and reasoned that the fairytale princess was the "fairest of them all" with "skin as white as snow."
Upon receiving the backlash, Rachel took to her Twitter account to fire back at haters. "Yes I am snow white no I am not bleaching my skin for the role," she wrote in a since-deleted tweet. In January 2022, she also talked to actor Andrew Garfield for Variety's Actors on Actors series about disgruntled fans who came at her.
Recalling the situation, the actress said, "[It] was a huge thing that was trending on Twitter for days, because all of the people were angry." Andrew responded by pointing out that those people need to be educated, "Ah, those people. The people that we need to educate. The people that we need to love into awareness."
Rachel agreed with the "tick, tick…Boom!" actor. "We need to love them in the right direction," she replied, "At the end of the day, I have a job to do that I'm really excited to do. I get to be a Latina princess."
Nonetheless, Rachel did not let any hate comments ruin her joy in nailing the role. Sharing her excitement in representing her race, she gushed, "Never in a million years did I imagine that this would be a possibility for me. You don't normally see Snow Whites that are of Latin descent. Even though Snow White is really a big deal in Spanish-speaking countries."
"Blanca Nieves is a huge icon whether you're talking about the Disney cartoon or just different iterations and the Grimm fairytale and all the stories that come with it," Rachel went on explaining. "But you don't particularly see people who look like me or are me playing roles like that."
The live-action remake movie of Snow White is directed by director Marc Webb. In June 2021, the director praised Rachel for her talent. "Rachel's extraordinary vocal abilities are just the beginning of her gifts," he remarked, "Her strength, intelligence and optimism will become an integral part of rediscovering the joy in this classic Disney fairytale."
