Disney’s live-action Snow White remake has been banished from the domestic box office top five less than a month after its release—a harsh reality check for the studio’s latest attempt at reviving its animated classics. Despite its high-profile branding and a marketing budget as towering as its production costs, the film is failing beyond what Disney could have imagined.
The sharp decline became clear after the film lost a staggering 1,210 theaters last Friday, following an earlier reduction of 450 the weekend prior. According to Forbes, Snow White is now projected to earn only $2.8 million from 2,540 theaters over its fourth weekend, landing it at number eight on the domestic chart. The fall follows a brutal 66% drop during its second weekend, where the film managed just $14.2 million—a far cry from the blockbuster expectations tied to one of its most iconic fairytales.
The view count and dislike ratio for the second trailer for Disney‘s live action Snow White starring Rachel Zegler – YouTube, Disney
The film’s disappointing box office performance has hopefully become a cautionary tale for Hollywood. Despite a reported $270 million production budget and an additional $140 million in marketing expenses, the film’s global revenue currently sits at an underwhelming $143.1 million. Analysts now predict the movie will fall dramatically short of profitability, potentially costing Disney around $115 million in losses.
While Snow White struggled to retain its audience, another family-friendly contender thrived in its place. The long-anticipated Minecraft movie has quietly become a box office winner, outperforming Snow White both in ticket sales and staying power. Built upon one of the most popular video game franchises in the world, the film has successfully drawn in both younger audiences and adult fans eager for a faithful adaptation of the game’s blocky, imaginative universe.
Industry analysts credit Minecraft‘s success to several key factors: broad multigenerational appeal, straightforward marketing, and an absence of the controversy that plagued the live-action Snow White. Where Minecraft leaned into fun and nostalgia, Snow White was doomed by months of social media backlash and pre-release interviews that left many moviegoers questioning the direction of the project.
A Minecraft Movie walked away from its second chaotic weekend in theaters with a staggering domestic total of $278,864,857, bringing its worldwide box office to $552,664,857. https://t.co/hbvt0Jmy3s pic.twitter.com/4hJxikbrss
— IGN (@IGN) April 15, 2025
The film’s lead actress, Rachel Zegler, attracted criticism early in the marketing cycle for comments suggesting the remake would “rewrite” the original fairytale to suit modern tastes. Her dismissive comments about the original story—particularly the classic prince—left many feeling the remake cared more for modern commentary than respecting its source material. The resulting pushback likely didn’t help the film’s reception, especially in a market increasingly weary of so-called “modern re-imaginings.”
The Snow White box office fallout has already begun to ripple through Disney’s future plans. According to reports from Entertainment Weekly, the company has paused development on its upcoming live-action Tangled remake, a move widely interpreted as a strategic retreat from the live-action remake formula—at least for now.
Gal Gadot and Rachel Zegler present together at the Oscars – X, @priceoreason
For a company once known for defining the fairytale genre, Disney’s recent string of remake disappointments raises tough questions about its creative direction. While the studio has leaned heavily on nostalgia to carry its box office strategy for years, the abysmal, diminishing returns of Snow White suggest that audiences are looking for more than just recycled classics with a new coat of paint. They want something actually new.
Whether the company adjusts its approach or doubles down remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: the box office has spoken, and this time, the audiences weren’t enchanted.
One woke movie fails, while another succeeds. A mixed bag.
Snow Brown earned a total of…$182.6 million in almost four weeks. Not even a quarter of what it needs to break even. Yet it was in the top five? Sheesh! What more do we need before people realize Hollywoke is dead?