Rachel Zegler is taking on the role of a live-action Disney princess as the star of Snow White, the upcoming remake of the animated classic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. All throughout production, there has been a lot of criticism leveled at the movie online, but Zegler sees the positive side of the discourse.

In a new interview with Vogue Mexico (per THR), Zegler opened up on the Snow White backlash. She believes it’s the result of the “passion” that fans have for the original, and that makes it feel like an “honor” to be starring in something that’s held in such high regard. Calling young Black girls seeing Halle Bailey’s role as Ariel in The Little Mermaid a “beautiful experience,” Zegler also addressed the representation she brings to Hollywood with her Colombian heritage.

“I interpret people’s feelings about this film as a passion for it,” Zegler is interpreted as saying. “What an honor to be part of something that people feel so passionate about. We’re not always going to have the same feelings as everyone around us, and all we can do is give the best of ourselves.”

What an honor to be part of something that people feel so passionate about.

Zegler added, “I understand that the community doesn’t want to be seen as a monolith, but the reality of being Latino and working in this industry is that we try to represent the entire diaspora. I know where I have been, I represent it in my narrative and I carry it in my heart every day.”

She went on to address the differences between her new live-action Snow White movie and the animated classic. Zegler promised that the film has found the right “balance” between honoring the original and reintroducing the story of Snow White for a new audience in 2025. Additionally, Zegler shared how she sees Snow White’s heart as her “superpower,” suggesting that the world might be a better place if more people in real life felt the same way.

“It’s very important for the public to know that Disney has found this beautiful and delicate balance between the animated classic that everyone knows and loves from 1937, and at the same time, introduces it to this new generation,” she said. “Her superpower is her heart. There is no supernatural power that Snow White possesses beyond her love for humanity, for all living creatures and her fundamental belief that there is goodness in everything. That’s something I really believe the world could take advantage of more.”

Snow White Is Coming to Theaters in March

Much has been said about the new Snow White film and Zegler’s casting. During a press interview about the movie, she referred to the animated classic as “dated” and “weird,” referring to how the prince in the story “literally stalks” Snow White. This added to the online furor with some fans of the animated movie taking great offense to these comments. She previously has suggested that these were just “jokes” that didn’t go over as well as she had hoped, clarifying that she appreciates the love story between the prince and princess in the original movie.

“It can be very upsetting when things get taken out of context or jokes don’t land,” she said, per Variety. “The love story is very integral. A lot of people wrote that we weren’t doing [that storyline] anymore — we were always doing that; it just wasn’t what we were talking about on that day.”

Snow White will be released in movie theaters on March 21, 2025.