Biggest Differences Between Disney’s Snow White & The 1937 Movie

Summary

• The Snow White remake introduces new elements, like her parents and modernized romance.
• Significant changes include new songs, the omission of Prince Charming character, and Dopey being able to speak.
• The new film changes the Evil Queen’s defeat and emphasizes Snow White’s fight for her kingdom.

The release of Disney’s Snow White has been a major one, with a lot of negativity being directed towards the film online. Despite this, the film is off to a start at the box office, with some fans choosing online to focus on the significant shifts that mark the film as a completely different beast to the original.

Of all the Disney live-action remakes thus far, none have yet attempted to remake a film as old as Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs. Coming from 1937, a nearly 90-year gap between versions is bound to require some changes for modern sensibilities, as well as delivering the same brand of expanded story and character development, which many of the live-action Disney remakes have followed.

8

Snow White’s Parents Appear

A Happy Family To Begin With

The 1937 version of Snow White was fairly brief, beginning with Snow White as a servant girl to the Queen. Unsurprisingly, the opening is one of the most changed sections of the film, showing that Snow White was born into a happy kingdom where her parents ruled in a wise and fair manner, with their main characteristics emblazoned literally on their chest in the form of a locket they give to Snow White.

“Fearless, fair, brave, and true” is a line often repeated throughout the new film, something never brought up in the original. The opening minutes of the new film focus on how Snow White and how her kingdom went from happy and thriving to under the thumb of the Evil Queen, and it all comes down to the loss of both her parents, a section of her story that was completely omitted from the original film.

7

Someday My Prince Will (Not) Come

A Missing Song For Different Times & A Changed Romantic Interest

One of the most major shifts in Snow White’s story is her romance. Prince Charming, also known as Prince Florian, is completely left out in the live-action film, replaced by Jonathan, a bandit who fights in the name of Snow White’s father for justice, leading a rebel group against the Evil Queen’s rule.

Subsequently, and to fit with more modern sensibilities, a major song from the original film, “Someday My Prince Will Come,” is left out of the new version entirely. An iconic scene where Snow White sings to the dwarfs a gentle story is gone, and her meeting with Jonathan at the beginning of the film comes when she catches him stealing potatoes from the Queen and chooses to save him from punishment. This is a far cry from her original meet-cute with a handsome prince in the 1937 film.

6

The Other Songs Are Much Changed

New Lyrics & Entirely New Songs

“Someday My Prince Will Come” is not the only missing song in the new Snow White. The dwarves’ washing song has also disappeared, much to the chagrin of many fans. In addition, most of the other songs from the original film have been much changed; lyrics are completely different for songs like “Heigh-Ho” and “Whistle While You Work” in order to be more updated and to fit the different style of the film.

However, the new film makes up for missing and changed songs by adding a number of new ones. “Waiting on a Wish” is a great new song which is reprised throughout, the Evil Queen finally gets a villain song with “All is Fair,” and Snow White’s new romance with Jonathan is showcased through “Princess Problems” and later “A Hand Meets A Hand.” Additionally, the “Good Things Grow” song is a triumphant new opening number.

5

Dopey Can Speak

The Dwarf Is Shy But Comes Through Eventually

In another attempt to update some parts of the 1937 film that weren’t completely up to modern standards, there have been some changes made to the character of Dopey in particular. Highlighted above her relationship with the other dwarves, like Grumpy, who got the most attention in the original, the new live-action film focuses on Snow White’s relationship with Dopey, who appears to be somewhat bullied by the other dwarves.

Dopey never spoke in the original film, but in the live-action film, it is made clear that he can speak. He just doesn’t because he is scared, and in the third act, he proves this by finally speaking up in an attempt to embolden Snow White and the other dwarves into standing against the Evil Queen. It’s an interesting change, but it’s not an unwelcome one.

4

The Thief Characters

A Second Group Of Curious Friends

A longer runtime for the live-action film, by some margin over the 1937 original, meant that undoubtedly more characters would feature in this new tale. For the most part, they take the shape of bandits that work alongside Jonathan out in the forest, attempting to defy the rule of the Evil Queen.

These bandits are highlighted in particular after Snow White initially leaves the dwarves, fearing for their safety. She sets out and runs back into Jonathan. Here, she meets his crew of merry friends, including the crossbow-obsessed Quigg, and others including Farno, Scythe, Finch, Bigley, and Norwich. It goes without saying that all of these characters are completely new; the original featured few characters outside of Snow White, the dwarves, the Evil Queen, and her Huntsman.

3

No Glass Coffin

Snow White Is Never Actually Encased

Although the live-action remake does feature the infamous scene where the disguised Evil Queen tricks Snow White with a poisoned apple, the dwarves do not get to the point where they actually place her in a beautiful glass coffin. Instead, they merely lay her outside on a plinth and watch over her, surrounding her with flowers and nature.

This was a surprising removal to many fans, since the striking image of Snow White in her glass coffin is one of the more famous ones from the 1937 film. However, given the short timeframe of her supposed death, Disney might have felt like it was unnecessary in the new version.

2

A Defiant Fight For The Kingdom

Snow White Returns To Challenge The Queen’s Rule

Possibly the biggest change overall to the live-action film is that Snow White’s journey is about so much more than surviving the Queen; it is about her rising to fight against her for the sake of the kingdom she loves. The kingdom and its people are a huge focus in the new film, and Snow White finally chooses to stand and fight for them after waking up from her near-death experience.

In the 1937 film, Snow White simply awakens and rides off into the sunset with her prince. While she and her new love do get a happy ending in the live-action film, she first must go through a stand against the Queen, with the people of the kingdom at her back.

1

The Evil Queen’s Death

A Completely Different Ending

The death of the Evil Queen herself is also hugely changed from the original. After poisoning Snow White in the 1937 film, the Queen is chased by the dwarves, still in her hag guise, and falls from a cliff to her death suddenly. This isn’t at all the case in the live-action film.

Instead, Gal Gadot’s Evil Queen returns to the kingdom and her normal body. Here, she stands against Snow White and the kingdom’s people with her guards. After Snow White turns even them against her, she is left with no recourse, and she runs to her magic mirror and smashes it, which kills her in the process. A strange choice, this ending was a definitive loss of everything for the Queen, and her vanity proved to be her ultimate downfall.

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  Snow White
  
  

  
  

  Release Date

  March 21, 2025
  

  Runtime

  109 Minutes

  Director

  Marc Webb

  Writers

  Erin Cressida Wilson, Wilhelm Grimm

  Producers

  Callum McDougall, Marc Platt

  
  

  
  

  
  

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  Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
  
  

  
  

  Release Date

  January 14, 1938
  

  Runtime

  83 minutes

  Director

  Ben Sharpsteen, Larry Morey, David Hand, Perce Pearce, William Cottrell, Wilfred Jackson

  
  

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    Adriana Caselotti

    Snow White (voice) (uncredited)

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    Lucille La Verne

    Queen / Witch (voice) (uncredited)

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    Harry Stockwell

    Prince (voice) (uncredited)

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    Roy Atwell

    Doc (voice) (uncredited)

  
  

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