Update, Tuesday, January 25 at 5:00 p.m.: Disney has responded to Peter Dinklage’s comments on the live-action Snow White. “To avoid reinforcing stereotypes from the original animated film, we are taking a different approach with these seven characters and have been consulting with members of the dwarfism community,†a Disney spokesperson said in a statement to Vulture. “We look forward to sharing more as the film heads into production after a lengthy development period.â€
Original story follows.
Peter Dinklage has questioned Disney’s decision to create a live-action version of Snow White, which he described as a “fucking backwards story.†During a Monday episode of Marc Maron’s WTF podcast, the Cyrano actor, who has a form of dwarfism called achondroplasia, said that he has a front-row seat to “a lot of hypocrisy going on.†When asked to provide an example, Dinklage pointed to the upcoming remake that stars Rachel Zegler as the titular princess. “They were very proud to cast a Latina actress as Snow White,†he said. “But you’re still telling the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Take a step back and look at what you’re doing there. It makes no sense to me. You’re progressive in one way, but you’re still making that fucking backwards story of seven dwarfs living in a cave together.â€
Dinklage added that he has love and respect for Zegler and the people involved who thought they were doing the right thing. “But I’m just like, What are you doing?†he said. Later in the podcast, he told Maron he would be “all in†for a retelling of Snow White with a “fucked-up, cool, progressive spin.†The live-action Snow White is scheduled to begin production this year; a release date has not been announced yet.