Rachel Zegler says the “Snow White” backlash was “really confusing.” In a recent interview, the actress revisited the reaction to her Disney casting and the way it landed during her early twenties, when scrutiny around her identity grew louder.
Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story” breakout has lived through both extremes of fame. The piece paired the “Snow White” fallout with her London rebound in “Evita” and upcoming Palladium run in “The Last Five Years.”
Rachel Zegler opens up about ‘Snow White’ casting backlash in new interview
As per the Harper’s Bazaar UK interview, Rachel Zegler said, “I was told I wasn’t enough of one thing for West Side Story and too much of another for Snow White.” She added, “It was a really confusing time to be in my early twenties and hearing that.” At the same time, the actress, whose mother is Colombian and father is Polish, said she grew up proud of being Colombian. Then she revealed her emotional sentiment, now driving Zegler’s backlash story. “I refuse to assimilate for anybody else’s comfort,” she said.
For context, the backlash came from several fronts. Some viewers objected to Rachel Zegler’s Colombian and Polish heritage playing “Snow White,” while others attacked her for calling the 1937 film “dated” and saying the prince “literally stalks” her on the red carpet. Later, her public support for Palestinian rights made the fallout more political.
Meanwhile, Harper’s Bazaar UK interview also revisited how the “Snow White” controversy grew beyond casting talk. Zegler said the situation became “a complete study in intent versus impact.” She did not retract her views, saying, “I’ve said what I feel, and that will always be a testament to my core beliefs as a human.” Still, she added that experience brought caution. “The temptation to speak doesn’t always mean that it must be done,” she said, arguing there are “more meaningful” ways to create change than a tweet.
However, Rachel Zegler also made clear that the backlash was not abstract. She said, “If I’d been able to predict everything that would come my way, the threats to my safety, I would have just thrown my phone into the ocean.” Finally, the support came from Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu, who took her out during “Shazam! Fury of the Gods.” Then came “Evita,” which, she said, “immediately flipped the script.”
