Disney responds to criticism over Snow White and the Seven Dwarves remake

26 January 2022, 12:51 | Updated: 26 January 2022, 13:24

By Alice Dear

Disney have said the new Snow White and the Seven Dwarves film will approach dwarfism 'differently' following Peter Dinklage's comments on the remake.

Disney have responded to criticism over the remake of animated classic Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (1937).

The filmmaking giant is said to begin filming the live-action remake in March this year, adding to their collection of reimagined classics.

While Disney remakes usually cause some sort of controversy, Snow White has received a wide amount of criticism from the dwarfism community regarding their latest project.

This includes Game of Thrones actor Peter Dinklage, 52, who publicly spoke about his disapproval of the remake this week.

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The actor, who has a common form of dwarfism known as achondroplasia, told Marc Maron on the WTF podcast how he thought Disney were being 'backwards' by reviving the story.

Now, Disney have responded to Peter and others with concerns over the remake, explaining that they will be taking a "different approach" from the original animated film's portrayal of the dwarves.

Watch the trailer for 1937's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

A Disney spokesperson said: “To avoid reinforcing stereotypes from the original animated film, we are taking a different approach with these seven characters and have been consulting with members of the dwarfism community.

"We look forward to sharing more as the film heads into production after a lengthy development period."

West Side Story actress Rachel Zegler is set to play Snow White in the upcoming flick, a move which Peter Dinklage branded "progressive".

However, the actor said he thinks that the same progressiveness of casting a Latino actress in the lead role needs to be extended across the entire cast.

He expressed his views on the podcast, saying: "There's a lot of hypocrisy going on I've got to say.

"No offence to anything but I was a little taken aback by [the fact that] they were very proud to cast a Latino actress as Snow White, but you're still telling the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

"They were so proud of that, and all love and respect to the actress and the people who thought they were doing the right thing but I'm just, like, 'what are you doing?'."

He continued: "Take a step back and look at what you're doing there. It makes no sense to me.

"You can be progressive in one way but you're still making that backwards story of the seven dwarves living in the cave.

"What are you doing, man? Have I done nothing to advance the cause from my soapbox? I guess I'm not loud enough."

Snow White and the Seven Dwarves is set to be released in 2023.