When Disney released its March 2025 “Snow White” remake, many expected the film to flop.
One of the biggest reasons for that is the film’s far-left lead actress, Rachel Zegler, whose anti-Trump stances and other politicized rhetoric hindered the film before a single advanced review could be published.
Combine Zegler’s antics with a smattering of other issues, like what to do with the story’s seven dwarves, and many prognosticators predicted a bloodbath for the beleaguered film.
So it came as little surprise when “Snow White” bombed out of the gate, both commercially and critically, despite Disney’s best attempts to sell it:
Magic mirror on the wall, show us the story that started it all 🪞 Disney’s #SnowWhite is only in theaters March 21, 2025. pic.twitter.com/88u2KkyZh6
— Walt Disney Studios (@DisneyStudios) December 3, 2024
Now, just about a year after the film’s release, new data from Forbes has shed some light on just how badly “Snow White” flopped in the grand scheme of things.
In short: Disney lost nearly an eye-watering $170 million on this live-action reboot.
In total, the film earned a respectable $205.7 million over its theatrical lifetime. The problem, then, was how much money Disney pumped into this seemingly doomed project.
Digging into European financial statements (unlike in America, when a film is made in the U.K., financial data is more readily available), it was discovered that Disney pumped over $300 million into this project.
The math — including U.K. reimbursements and the “50-50 split” (which effectively halves profit after you factor in paying back investors and such) — results in Disney having lost $167.8 million for “Snow White.”
Now, there are two key figures not factored into that final outcome.
First, none of these numbers account for future sales, such as Blu Ray and video-on-demand purchases. There’s certainly a world where Disney shaved off a considerable chunk of that $167.8 million loss through those sorts of sales.
However, the above numbers also don’t account for marketing spend.
There’s little doubt that Disney was forced to heavily market the film due to all of the negative chatter surrounding it leading up to the film’s release. And marketing budgets are notoriously expensive.
Forbes also revealed that the film blew past its original budget, though that may have been out of Disney’s hands. When “Snow White” first began filming, a fire ravaged its original set, necessitating what would surely be a costly rebuild.
Combine all of these factors with a deeply polarizing lead actress, and it’s little wonder that the House of Mouse took a big loss with “Snow White.”
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