Disney’s live-action Snow White remake has been confirmed to have made a big but necessary change to the title character’s name, which copies a decision Disney had already made in a TV show with a 78% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes. Since the 2010s, Disney has been riding the wave of live-action remakes of some of its animated movies, and though not all of them have succeeded, the studio continues to make the most out of it. Disney still has a long list of live-action remakes coming up, and next in line is Snow White, directed by Marc Webb.

Starring in Snow White are Rachel Zegler as the title character, Gal Gadot as the Evil Queen, and Ansu Kabia as the Huntsman. Snow White has been surrounded by different controversies since its cast was announced, and it only grew once the first teaser trailer was released. The latest reveal about Snow White is a change in the origin of the character’s name, a decision that Disney had already made 13 years ago.

Disney's Live-Action Snow White Name Change Uses Once Upon A Time's Explanation

Once Upon A Time Made A Key Change To Snow White’s Name

The Brothers Grimm’s version of Snow White explains the origin of the character’s name, and it’s purely based on her physical appearance. The story begins with a queen sewing at an open window during a snowfall. The queen pricks her finger with the needle and three drops of blood fall onto the snow on the black window sill. The queen then says to herself how she wishes to have a daughter with “skin as white as snow, lips as red as blood, and hair as black as ebony.” Some time later, the queen dies giving birth to a daughter she names Snow White.

Zegler explained that her character’s name comes from having survived a snowstorm when she was a baby.

Although Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs doesn’t explain the character’s name, it’s understood that it’s the same as in the Brothers Grimm’s tale due to her physical appearance. This will be different in the live-action Snow White remake as confirmed by Zegler, who, in an interview with Variety, explained that her character’s name comes from having survived a snowstorm when she was a baby. According to Zegler, the king and queen decided to name their daughter “Snow White” to remind her of her resilience.

Zegler mentioned that this comes from another version of Snow White though she didn’t specify which one, but fans of the character will this change was already made by Disney in the TV series Once Upon a Time. Created by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz, Once Upon a Time had two main settings: a fantasy world where fairy tales come to life, and a fictional seaside town called Storybrooke, where fairy-tale characters were transported and their memories were wiped. One of the show’s main characters is Snow White (Ginnifer Goodwin), and the origin of her name was also changed.

In an episode of Once Upon a Time, it was revealed that Snow was born during one of the harshest winters in the Enchanted Forest. Her mother, Queen Eva, named her “Snow White” because of that, but also because she had snow-white skin. Once Upon a Time’s Snow White still fitted the classic description of the character, but for the live-action remake, this wasn’t fitting anymore.

What Version Of The Story Inspired Once Upon A Time & Snow White's Name Change

Snow White’s Name Has A Different Origin In The Brothers Grimm’s Tale

As mentioned above, Zegler said the change to the origin of Snow White’s name in the live-action remake comes from another version of the story in history – the problem is that she didn’t mention which one, and there are way too many versions of Snow White, depending on the country and more. Of course, there are also several adaptations of the tale that have made changes to it depending on their genre and more, so finding out exactly which version Disney took the origin of Snow White’s name from is very difficult.

Given that Once Upon a Time is also a Disney property, it’s most likely that the movie took inspiration from the show for the origin of Snow White’s name.

However, fans on social media have pointed out that Snow White’s name being associated with a snowstorm was a change made in the 1997 horror movie Snow White: A Tale of Terror, starring Sigourney Weaver and Monica Keena. It would be surprising if Disney took the idea from a horror version of Snow White, but given that Once Upon a Time is also a Disney property, it’s most likely that the movie took inspiration from the show for the origin of Snow White’s name.

Why Disney Is Changing The Origin Of Snow White's Name From The Animated Movie

Snow White’s Name Change Is A Good Decision

Among the backlash Snow White has received is Zegler being Latina, thus not having the physical traits that the character has in the classic tale and the animated version. Zegler later shared that Snow White is changing the character into a stronger, less reliant, and more of a leader type of character, giving her a lot more agency than she had in the 1937 movie. Snow White is paying more attention to the story’s themes than to the characters’ looks, so it makes sense that the origin of the character’s name was changed.

Snow White surviving a snowstorm as a baby will also add to her strength as a teenager/young adult.

By changing the origin of the name, Snow White is focusing on her personality and other traits rather than on the color of her skin, and emphasizes the character’s resilience. Snow White surviving a snowstorm as a baby will also add to her strength as a teenager/young adult, so this different origin isn’t so much linked to Rachel Zegler’s physical appearance but to the development of the character.

Source: Variety.