Who is the fairest of them all? You might be surprised that it's not Gal Gadot, who is in final negotiations to be cast as the Evil Queen rather than the princess in Disney’s live-action Snow White remake, as reported Wednesday by online industry site Deadline.
Snow White herself will be played by Rachel Zegler, who stars in the upcoming West Side Story remake by Steven Spielberg.
Gadot is best known for her portrayal of Wonder Woman, the warrior goddess and protector of all things good. But with the Netflix movie Red Notice, which will start streaming November 12, she plays a baddie of sorts, an infamous art thief called the Bishop, which could be a good warm-up for playing the Evil Queen, one of the most mean-spirited of all fairy-tale villainesses.
Production is expected to start on the movie in 2022, with Marc Webb (500 Days of Summer) directing and Marc Platt (La La Land) producing.
The classic Disney cartoon Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs came out in 1937 and is regarded as one of the greatest animated features of all time, showcasing the artistry of Walt Disney and the talent of his staff decades before computer-generated imagery. It was Disney’s first full-length animated movie and was a huge success. The new version will add to the story and also feature some new music.
Gadot may well have been whistling while she worked this year. The Rosh Ha’ayin native has been busy, headlining Red Notice, which also stars Dwayne Johnson and Ryan Reynolds, not to mention the Wonder Woman sequel, Wonder Woman 1984. She managed to find time to give birth to a third daughter and produce the series, Impact, for National Geographic, showcasing inspiring stories of women around the world.
She is also involved in developing a new version of Cleopatra, making a television series based on the life of screen goddess Hedy Lamarr and shooting the Netflix film, Heart of Stone. She has a lead role in Kenneth Branagh’s Death on the Nile, a new version of the Agatha Christie classic, which is set to be released in 2022. And, of course, she has a third Wonder Woman film coming up.
But with coloring that matches the Evil Queen – lips as red as a rose, snow-white skin and ebony hair – she seems like an ideal choice for a character that generations have loved to hate.