Disney is turning yet another beloved animation into a live-action film with the upcoming Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
Much was tried to be made over the casting of a racially diverse cast, including the casting of a Latino actress to portray Snow White herself.
However, Peter Dinklage made a very powerful statement this week on the lack of intersectionality involved in Disney’s attempts at progressiveness. While appearing on Marc Maron’s WTF podcast, the Game of Thrones actor, who has a form of dwarfism called achondroplasia, called out the continued inclusion of harmful stereotypes about disabilities in the film.
“No offence to anything but I was a little taken aback by… they were very proud to cast a Latino actress as Snow White, but you’re still telling the story of Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs,” he said.
“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 backward story of seven dwarves living in the cave. What the fuck are you doing, man? Have I done nothing to advance the cause from my soapbox? I guess I’m not loud enough.”
After Dinklage’s statement soon made headlines online, Disney moved to issue a statement of their own. They responded by insisting that they’re taking a “different approach” to the seven dwarfs in the upcoming adaptation.
“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,” the statement reads. “We look forward to sharing more as the film heads into production after a lengthy development period.”
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As reported by The Wrap, this means that the forthcoming film will replace the dwarf characters with “magical creatures”.
A release date for Snow White hasn’t been revealed yet but if Disney hope it will be better received than their live-action remakes of Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King, and Dumbo, they’re off to a rocky start.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGw2hNB37iU
