Controversy Aside, ‘Snow White’ Hopes to Perk Up the Box Office With $100M-Plus Global Opening

Once upon a time, 2025 box office revenue was up 22 percent over last year. Now, after a string of miserable weekends, there’s actually a five percent deficit.

If tracking and exhibitor reactions are any indication, Disney‘s live-action Snow White could spark a turnaround with a domestic debut in the $45 million range to $55 million range and north of $100 million globally. But there are no guarantees, and Disney execs are on high alert. Overseas, the movie — which faced numerous delays due to the pandemic and labor strikes — is unfurling in virtually every territory, save for a few Middle Eastern markets because of Ramadan.

Snow White arrives in theaters loaded with baggage after being buffeted by delays and controversy again and again, beginning with a backlash over casting Rachel Zegler in the titular role because of the color of her skin (she is of Colombian descent).

More recently, Disney took the unusual step of barring independent press from doing interviews on the red carpet of the March 15 world premiere as to ensure it maximum control in terms of messaging. Zegler and Gal Gadot, who is Israeli and plays the evil queen, were both in good spirits at the premiere and showed no signs of animosity (the two are on opposite side politically when it comes to the conflict in Gaza). And Zegler has made headlines several times through the Snow White years, including criticizing Donald Trump’s deportation policies last fall.

Box office sources say awareness and interest is solid-to-strong among girls, women of all ages and families. The movie has virtually no immediate competition and will have access to all 400 Imax screens and numerous other premium large-format screens, which are a boon for any title. And even rival execs say exhibitors are keen on the pic.

In terms of other Disney live-action princess remakes, Beauty and the Beast astounded when opening to $174.6 million domestically in mid-March 2017, not adjusted for inflation. In spring 2015, Cinderella debuted to $67.9 million domestically; Maleficent launched to $69 million in May 2014 (the sequel, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil stalled at $37 million).

While Snow White is one of the best-known Disney princesses among adults 45 years and older, she is far-less known among younger demos. Not to mention that Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is almost a 100 years old. The animated Beauty and the Beast was released in 1991, with generations of kids growing up watching the film at home. And Cinderella has remained a perennial favorite among Disney princess fans since the animated film hit theaters in 1950.

Comscore chief box analyst Paul Dergarabedian believes the female-fueled Snow White, followed two weeks later by A Minecraft Movie, break the evil spell gripping the box office. “A box office fairy tale will be most welcome, even with an expected $50 million range debut. Recent entire weekends have barely cleared $50 million, so Disney’s Snow White may give this rather ‘Grimm’ month just the kiss it needs to get the industry heading back in a princely direction,” he said.

While reviews haven’t yet posted, first reactions to the film from those attending the world premiere were promising. The movie is “actually mostly successful,” according to one viewer, while several praised Zegler, with one critic calling her “stunning.”

Also opening this weekend is Robert De Niro mob movie The Alto Knights. It was one of the first movies greenlit by David Zaslav after Warner Bros. Discovery was formed in 2022, and stars De Niro in the dual roles of infamous New York City mob bosses Frank Costello and Vito Genovese. The pic, directed by Barry Levinson from a script by Nicholas Pileggi, will also get some PLF showings. It’s looking at an opening in the single digits.