The 'West Side Story' star, who receives huge backlash for her casting as Snow White in Disney's upcoming live-action 'Snow White' movie, discusses the online trolls on Variety's 'Actors on Actors' series.
- Dec 9, 2023
AceShowbiz - Rachel Zegler doesn't entirely condemn the hate comments she's received. The actress, who received huge backlash for her casting as Snow White in Disney's upcoming live-action "Snow White" movie, discussed the online trolls in a new episode of Variety's "Actors on Actors" series with Halle Bailey.
During the sit-down, both Rachel and Halle reflected on the online harassment that both of them faced due to their castings. Halle experienced the racist backlash after being tapped to play the first black Ariel in "The Little Mermaid (2023)".
"You proved them wrong with grace," Rachel told Halle in "Actors on Actors", which was released on Thursday, December 7. "I was so inspired by the way you handled anybody who had anything bad to say about it."
Rachel then asked, "Did you ever let it affect you at all? You definitely didn't publicly." Halle responded, "Of course. I mean, we're sensitive. We're human beings. I get my feelings hurt if my cat doesn't want to sit next to me," with Rachel noting, "I'm the same way."
Halle explained, "That's what people don't realize: We're granted amazing opportunities and able to be seen on massive screens, but there is a dissociation. People start taking you away from being a real human being that has feelings and reacts to things. That was definitely something that I had to navigate."
The one half of Chloe X Halle said that it "turned out to be the most beautiful lesson - to block any naysayers or negativity out." She added, "Also, I'm an Aries, so I'm a fire sign. People are like, 'Oh, she's so sweet. She's so nice.' But a lot of times when I see stuff online, I get mad. It's hard being women under the spotlight. People are so critical and say anything that they would never say to your face."
As for Rachel, she pointed out that she would choose "thankfulness and gratefulness" for peace. "As much as you'd like to remind people verbally that being in the spotlight doesn't absolve you of your humanity - that you're allowed to have human moments - it doesn't necessarily do what you want it to do. It fuels them more," she shared.
"The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" star added that she's "so thankful for those moments because it started to make me feel like solid Teflon. That nothing can hurt anymore because they've said the worst that can be said."
She continued, "You just say, 'Thank you so much for this. I have a lot of love in my life, and I'm very thankful.' We get to do our work and have that speak for itself instead."
