Consequences of the Snow White Scandal

Rapunzel Missed Her Date

April 3, The Hollywood Reporter citing internal sources Disney Revealing the production process of the live-action version of Tangled has been paused.

Production on the live-action version of Tangled has been halted. Photo: Disney.

Animated version Tangled (Vietnamese title: Beauty Tangled ) was released in November 2010. The film is based on a fairy tale. Rapunzel The famous story of the Brothers Grimm, tells the story of Princess Rapunzel, famous for her long, silky blonde hair. She was kidnapped by an old witch at birth and imprisoned on the roof of a remote tower. She still thought the witch was her mother, obeyed her and stayed in the tower, never having contact with the outside world. On her 18th birthday, Rapunzel asked the witch for permission to leave the tower but was once again refused on the grounds that it was too dangerous. However, the appearance of the thief Flynn Rider changed the trajectory of Rapunzel's life. Since then, the secret about the identity of the princess with long hair was gradually revealed.

The animated film adapts quite a bit from the original. The character Rapunzel is build with the image of intelligence, vivacity, love of exploration and always yearning for freedom. The person who rescued her from the tower was not the prince, but the princess with long hair who made a deal with Flynn to get out. The two of them overcame many difficulties and challenges together and gradually developed feelings.

The musical adventure film conquers viewers with its humor, loveliness and meaningful message. Tangled grossed $590 million worldwide, including $200 million in North America.

The film even took home an Oscar for Best Original Song ( I See the Light ).

The Mouse House is said to have high hopes for the live-action project. The studio has tapped Michael Gracey (whose success The Greatest Showman ) is directing and Jennifer Kaytin Robinson ( Thor: Love and Thunder, Do Revenge ) is writing the screenplay.

The live-action version of Tangled was shelved after Snow White flopped at the box office. Photo: Disney.

Decision to "store" Tangled comes as Disney's latest live-action film adaptation, Snow White (Snow White), failed at the box office. As of April 3, the film has only grossed $69.8 million in North America and $145.6 million worldwide. After two weeks of release, the film has yet to surpass its massive $270 million budget (the budget increased due to the Hollywood actors and writers strike in 2023). Deadline Disney could suffer a loss of $115 million, according to analysts.

Snow White caused controversy from the beginning due to the choice of the main actress being very different from the original. Rachel Zegler was criticized as the ugliest Snow White in history. Not only that, the actress born in 2001 also made many extreme and impulsive statements that made the audience lose sympathy even more.

Of course, the cause of failure is not only Zegler, but also many other factors . including the quality of the film. Both critics and audiences did not appreciate the content of the film. Disney had the ambition to break the original to create a new monument, but the implementation was superficial and lacked depth.

Disney's Ray of Hope

According to The Hollywood Reporter , the pause of Tangled It also comes as some of the key figures behind Disney's live-action strategy leave the executive ranks. In February, Daria Cercek was appointed head of Live Action Theatrical Cinema. She is being replaced by David Greenbaum, president of Disney Live Action and 20th Century Studios, who will take over the role in 2024, replacing Sean Bailey.

Since the early 2010s, the Mouse House has embarked on a strategy of making live-action films from old titles. Some of these works have yielded satisfactory results ( Beauty and the Beast , Aladdin , The Lion King ), while others do not ( Dumbo , Pete's Dragon ).

By the end of 2024, Mufasa: The Lion King got off to a slow start with a North American opening of $35.4 million, before picking up steam and finishing with an impressive $718 million worldwide. Before that, The Little Mermaid brought in $570 million.

The strategy of making live-action films from old Disney animated titles is said to be increasingly weak, reaching rock bottom with Snow White.

Scandal Snow White seems to want to test the limits of this long-term strategy. It puts pressure on Disney's two other upcoming live-action projects. Tangled Whether or not the live-action strategy continues may depend on the box office performance of the new film.

So far, the audience's reaction to Disney's two live-action films has been positive, in stark contrast to the constant controversy of Snow White . Disney has reason to believe in their success.

Lilo & Stitch , a remake of the 2002 animated film, is set to hit theaters on May 23. During this year's Super Bowl, the commercial featuring Stitch "running" onto the field attracted 173.1 million views in 24 hours, making it Disney's most-watched commercial on digital media. It also became the second-most-watched Disney live-action trailer of all time.

Meanwhile, Moana The live-action version is scheduled to be released on July 10, 2026. The project has the advantage of being based on one of the most successful streaming series on Disney+, which has surpassed 1.4 billion hours - equivalent to more than 735 million movie views. It also comes right after the animated film. Moana 2 , which grossed $1 billion when it was released in November 2024, became the third highest-grossing film of 2024.