Disney's Snow White Remake Struggles to Break Even After Weak Box Office Start

Snow White, the latest live-action Disney remake directed by Marc Webb of The Amazing Spider-Man fame, encountered a challenging start at the box office over its opening weekend. According to Comscore, the film managed to secure $43 million domestically, marking it as the second highest domestic opening of 2025 so far, trailing only behind the MCU's Captain America: Brave New World. Despite topping this week's chart, Snow White fell short of the $45 million debut of the live-action Dumbo in 2019 and didn't meet pre-release expectations.

To put things in perspective, other Disney remakes like 2019's The Lion King, 2017's Beauty and the Beast, 2016's The Jungle Book, and 2023's The Little Mermaid all boasted opening weekend domestic totals exceeding $100 million.

Internationally, Snow White's performance was equally modest, with an opening weekend gross of $44.3 million, bringing the global total to $87.3 million as per Comscore estimates.

This new adaptation of Disney's 1937 animated classic features Rachel Zegler as Snow White and Gal Gadot as the Evil Queen. With a hefty production budget reportedly over $250 million, the film faces a steep challenge to break even, factoring in marketing expenses.

However, there is hope for Snow White. Disney's previous experience with Mufasa: The Lion King, a prequel to their Lion King remake, showed a promising trajectory. Despite a domestic opening of just $35.4 million, it ultimately amassed over $717 million worldwide. Disney is likely banking on a similar 'sleeper hit' success for Snow White.

Meanwhile, Captain America: Brave New World has continued its strong performance, grossing $400.8 million globally ($192.1 million domestic and $208.7 million international) after six weekends, amidst ongoing discussions about its performance.

IGN's review of Snow White awarded it a 7/10, commending it for "meaningfully adapting its original, rather than creating a lesser mimicry."