Disney’s slate of live-action remakes doesn’t seem to have any kind of end in sight, at the moment. As the House of Mouse continues to crank out reimaginings of its classic films, the studio has naturally had to cast stars to bring beloved characters to life. This year, moviegoers saw Halle Bailey embody The Little Mermaid’s Ariel for the revamp. Next up to the princess plate will be Rachel Zegler, who’s been tapped to play the titular character in Snow White. Both actresses’ castings, unfortunately, led to a bit of controversy and, at present, some viral TikToks are comparing the two using interview footage and more.
Why Are Social Media Users Comparing Disney Stars Rachel Zegler And Halle Bailey?
Rachel Zegler has been incredibly vocal about her turn as “the fairest of them all,” also sharing insight into how the new movie will differ from the 1937 version. But some fans seem to be displeased with past comments the West Side Story alum shared, particularly her critiques of the OG film and its central character. On the other hand, many find that Halle Bailey appeared somewhat more upbeat when talking about Ariel and her characterization in the lead-up to Little Mermaid’s release. With that, some people – like the following TikToker – have taken to splicing together interview footage of them in an attempt to show how they differ:
@baddiesglow ♬ original sound - baddiesglow
Based on the videos (which have received countless likes and comments at this point), Disney fans believe the Shazam! Fury of the Gods alum is being disrespectful towards her character. The star herself takes issue with Snow White’s apparent lack of independence and sense of helplessness in the original movie among other elements. A user known as @marshmallowmoney opines that the 22-year-old star has been “contradicting the essence” of the character. Conversely, they stated that the Grown-ish alum spoke about Ariel “with such care and elegance.” Another user shared a video of their own, which they tried to exemplify differences between the two stars’ interviews:
@l0akkk ♬ original sound - kat
A TikToker that goes by the handle @bookishnadi also made note of the apparent dichotomy during an address in their own video. The user also questioned why neither Disney nor Rachel Zegler’s PR teams allegedly haven’t intervened and asked her to change her tune. Additionally, they believe this press could have a negative impact on Zegler’s other upcoming movie: The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. That remains to be seen but in the meantime, we can discuss the blowback Zegler and her fellow Disney princess actress have experienced thus far.
Why Have The Two Disney Stars Experienced Blowback Related To Their Roles?
In addition to the comments Rachel Zegler has made, some of the public has taken issue with her casting for other reasons. The biggest seems to be the fact that she – a young woman of Colombian and Polish descent – doesn’t completely resemble the classic character. Sadly, that disdain has sparked a plethora of racist sentiments that have made the rounds on social media. On top of that, others have been critical of the alterations being made to the story, such as the exclusion of seven dwarfs. (Jackass’ Wee Man even chimed in on that front with some honest thoughts.) In terms of her own situation, Zegler responded to the backlash by thanking her fans and asking to be kept out of further discourse.
Halle Bailey received backlash as well, though it wasn’t necessarily because of anything she said. Like her colleague, she also received racist blowback due to the fact that Walt Disney Pictures chose to reimagine Ariel as African American. Amid the situation, Bailey received a wide range of support, including some kind sentiments from OG Ariel voice actor Jodi Benson. Ultimately, Bailey’s performance was praised, and her doll became a huge bestseller at that.
What’s also sweet is that Rachel Zegler and Halle Bailey have shown support for each other over these past several months. While some may be using the latter’s past sentiments to critique the former’s now, there are still plenty of people lending their positivity. It seems Zegler is aiming to focus on that and like Bailey before her, will block out the noise before her movie debuts.
Snow White is set to hit theaters on March 24 as part of the 2024 movie schedule, while The Little Mermaid will be streamable with a Disney+ subscription starting September 6.
