Long accused of choosing mainly white main characters, Disney gives the change. The studio announced Tuesday that it had chosen the young Métis actress Rachel Zegler to play the one who was, in 1937, the first film heroine of Disney: Snow White. She will therefore play the heroine of the famous cartoon in the version filmed in live action.
A Colombian mother and a Polish father, Rachel Zegler, now 20, was selected at 17 to play the role of Maria in the remake of West Side Story Steven Spielberg expected in December, whose team had auditioned more than 30,000 candidates. The team was particularly impressed by the voice of the young woman, who has already distinguished herself in many local productions of musicals in New Jersey, where she is from.
“Extraordinary vocal abilities”
“Rachel’s extraordinary vocal abilities are just one aspect of her talent,” commented Marc Webb, future director of the new version of Snow White, quoted by a spokesperson for Disney. “His strength, intelligence and optimism will become an integral part of this rediscovery of the joy of the classic Disney fairy tale,” explained the director, who notably directed two parts of the Spider-Man saga, The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) and The Amazing Spider-Man: A Hero’s Fate (2014).
Production on the film is set to begin in 2022, Disney said. Snow White is an adaptation of a tale by the Brothers Grimm, two German linguists who published the first version in 1812.
A cannonball career start
The choice of a Métis actress is a new sign of inflection for the studio. Mulan (2020) and Aladdin (2019), also live-shot versions, had already featured leading roles from diversity.
Still almost unknown to the general public, Rachel Zegler will make one of the most publicized career debuts in history with, in addition Snow White and West Side Story, a role in Shazam! Fury of the gods, DC Comics movie sequel Shazam! expected in 2023.