(Editor's note: The opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author.)
Over the years, Disney has produced films that have generated billions of dollars for the company and are beloved by generations of fans. Recently, however, Disney has shifted its focus toward increasing diversity and representation in its content — often at the expense of film quality and interesting storytelling. Since 2022, viewers like myself have been severely disappointed by Disney’s dedication to tokenism over quality work.
Snow White (2025) is an example of this. Disney tried to use the remake to tell diverse stories, but was instead extremely boring and gave the main characters little to do in their films. The diversity and change in plot from the original, and the dilution of Prince Charming’s role, did not make the film remotely interesting. Some of these more recent projects, including the Snow White remake, had budgets of hundreds-of-millions. Unfortunately for Disney, the film has not seen much success since its release.
Uprooting the incredible source material, like the Snow White remake did, will never make fans happy or perform well at the box office.. Instead of remaking old content to fit today’s diversity standards, filmmakers need to make new stories that incorporate new inclusive storytelling.
Star Wars, which Disney bought in 2012, is another example of this. President of Lucasfilm Kathleen Kennedy, who recently announced her intention to pick a successor at Lucasfilm, has pushed their movies away from the source material in the sequel movies and the subsequent set of Star Wars Disney+ series.
However, Disney can still reverse course. Marvel’s approach offers a more balanced example of how Disney could manage its properties. Although recent Marvel projects haven’t done as well recently as before Avengers: Endgame, series like Daredevil: Born Again continue to engage fans and show promise. Marvel has shown that thoughtful storytelling combined with representation can resonate with audiences.
Regardless, fans do need to be patient with Disney and other filmmakers. Good content takes time, and good storytelling does not happen overnight. While fans need to be heard by filmmakers, the artists need space to do what they do best.
Moving forward from Snow White, Disney’s challenge is to find writers who not only bring inclusive stories but also understand and respect the original source material. Their goal should be to tell imaginative, compelling stories that reflect diversity rather than force it on unrelated stories.
