As Disney’s Snow White continues to be engulfed in controversy, one of the film’s stars has confirmed what many already suspected—Disney is too afraid to hold a full premiere.
Martin Klebba, who voices Grumpy in the film, revealed that the studio scaled back the event over fears of backlash. However, despite his criticism of Disney’s handling of the Seven Dwarfs, Klebba also repeated the studio’s talking point that they always intended to use motion-capture animation for the characters—a claim that directly contradicts previous reports, leaked set photos, and even past statements from Disney itself.
Disney Is “Afraid of the Blowback” Over Snow White
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Klebba openly acknowledged that the upcoming premiere is not the major event one would expect for a film remaking Disney’s very first animated classic.
Martin Klebba in Pirates of the Caribbean – YouTube, Fandango at Home
“It really isn’t going to be a red carpet,” Klebba said. “It’s going to be at the El Capitan [Theatre], which is cool. But it’s basically going to be a pre-party, watch the movie, and that’s it. There’s not going to be this whole hoopla of, ‘Disney’s first f***** movie they ever made.’ Because of all this controversy, they’re afraid of the blowback from different people in society.”
This confirms that Disney is actively avoiding publicity for Snow White, a sign of just how little confidence they have in the project. Klebba specifically attributed the decision to “the controversy with Rachel,” referring to lead actress Rachel Zegler, who has been widely criticized for mocking the original Snow White and for her politically charged outbursts on social media.
Disney’s decision to shut out press at the premiere was already a red flag, but hearing one of the film’s own actors confirm that the studio is running scared only reinforces the idea that Snow White is shaping up to be a disaster.
Klebba Criticizes Disney’s Handling of the Dwarfs—But Then Pushes the Studio’s Revisionist History
Klebba also took issue with Disney’s decision to move away from the traditional portrayal of the Seven Dwarfs, a change that was heavily influenced by actor Peter Dinklage, who called the original fairy tale “backward.”
“I don’t usually get into the political stuff, but I [felt], ‘Dwarfs aren’t going to go away just because you can’t imagine that they’re there,’” Klebba said. “We’re still going to be walking around. So I didn’t get the whole stuff about not doing the dwarfs. The story’s been around forever, and it’s a classic.”
Dopey in the Live Action Snow White movie – YouTube, Disney
This statement is notable because Klebba is the only little person actor who was given a role in the film. His frustration highlights just how much Disney pushed out actual dwarf actors in favor of CGI creatures, a move that has drawn criticism from little people in Hollywood who saw it as a missed opportunity for real representation.
However, despite his frustration, Klebba then repeated the studio’s talking point that CGI dwarfs were always the plan—a claim that does not hold up to scrutiny.
“According to Klebba, the film had already intended to use motion-capture animation for the seven miners in the film,” THR said in its article.
This is blatantly false. Set photos from 2022 clearly showed a diverse group of actors of varying sizes and genders playing the Seven Dwarfs. The backlash to those images was immediate and severe, with many fans accusing Disney of erasing the iconic characters in favor of generic human replacements.
A leaked photo from the set of Snow White showing the dwarfs as diverse actors of various sizes – YouTube, The Critical Drinker
The Hollywood Reporter itself originally acknowledged this, admitting that Disney changed course after the backlash and ultimately went with CGI instead. However, the outlet later revised their article to erase this fact, claiming that CGI was always the plan—a clear case of Disney trying to rewrite history.
By repeating this false narrative, Klebba appears to be helping Disney cover up its own flip-flopping rather than holding the studio accountable for how poorly it handled the situation.
Klebba Acknowledges Another Disney Change—The Title Itself
In another surprising admission, Klebba called out the fact that Disney has stripped the dwarfs from the title of the film, a departure from the 1937 original, which was explicitly called Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
“I wish they would’ve kept it,” Klebba said. “I wouldn’t have gone away from that. But the marketing people know what they’re doing.”
Rachel Zegler singing the original song “Waiting on a Wish” from Disney’s Snow White live action remake – YouTube, Disney
The removal of “Seven Dwarfs” from the title is another sign of how far Disney has tried to distance itself from the traditional fairy tale, seemingly out of fear that a straightforward retelling would be labeled as problematic in modern Hollywood.
But given the massive backlash to the film’s changes, it’s clear that Disney’s attempt to rebrand Snow White has backfired completely.
Disney’s Snow White Remains a PR Nightmare
At this point, Snow White is looking less like a major Disney release and more like a movie the studio just wants to push out the door as quickly as possible.
Rachel Zegler as Snow White in Snow White (2025), Walt Disney Studios
The scaled-back premiere confirms that Disney is afraid to fully promote the film. Klebba’s criticism of the dwarf changes shows that even people involved in the movie disagree with the studio’s handling of the project. Yet, Disney’s revisionist history about the CGI dwarfs continues, with Klebba now repeating the false claim that they were always meant to be motion-capture characters.
Disney may be desperate to avoid more controversy, but it’s far too late for that. With a lead actress who has alienated fans, a story that has been drastically altered, and a premiere that is being quietly downplayed, Snow White is shaping up to be one of Disney’s biggest misfires in years.
What do you think about Disney scaling back the Snow White premiere? Sound off in the comments below and let us know!
Disney won’t accomplish a thing by scaling back the premiere. The damage is done and there’s no repairing it. At best it will reduce their final losses by around 1% because of how many people hate–and increasingly just don’t care–about this movie.
“little person actor” -> Ugh, this is left-wing Newspeak. The English language has a dedicated word for that. Midget. Never self-censor, or you’ve lost to left-wing-fascism. (Aka political correctness).
Given this movie is thoroughly ghastly, I don’t understand why Disney is desperate to get people to see it. Everyone who sees it will think twice about watching ANY movie made by Disney. It’s like destroying your brand, for a few peanuts. If I were a marketer, I’d say to Disney: this movie has failed QA. Throw the stupid thing in the bin.