New 'Snow White' tops N.America box office despite grumpy reviews

Pallade Veneta - New 'Snow White' tops N.America box office despite grumpy reviews

CULTURE 23.03.2025

New 'Snow White' tops N.America box office despite grumpy reviews / Photo: VALERIE MACON - AFP/File

Disney's remake of "Snow White," 90 years after the original blockbuster, topped the North American box office this weekend with an estimated take of $43 million, but faces stiff winds -- and some horrendous reviews -- to make up its huge production costs.

Change text size:

The new live-action version has faced a series of woes -- from the Covid pandemic to criticism of its use of CGI, not real actors, to portray the seven dwarves -- driving up its production cost to an estimated $250 million and making it "one of the most troubled projects in Disney's 102-year history," according to the New York Times.

Some reviews have been scathing -- the Guardian called it "toe-curlingly terrible" and "exhaustingly awful" -- while others were a bit kinder, with The Washington Post rating it "surprisingly entertaining." Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot star.

Focus Features' spy thriller "Black Bag" from Oscar winner Steven Soderbergh ticked up a notch from last weekend to second place, earning $4.4 million, industry watcher Exhibitor Relations reported. Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett star.

Third place, also up one spot from last weekend, went to Marvel and Disney's "Captain America: Brave New World," at $4.1 million. Anthony Mackie and Harrison Ford star in the latest installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Last weekend's second-place film, black comedy "Mickey 17" from Oscar-winner Bong Joon-ho, slipped to fourth place, at $3.9 million. Robert Pattinson, Steven Yeun, Toni Collette and Mark Ruffalo star in the Warner Bros.' sci-fi tale about the many lives -- and deaths -- of a man who volunteers for hazardous space missions.

And last weekend's leader, Paramount's action-comedy "Novocaine" suffered a painful drop in ticket sales, taking in just $3.8 million. Jack Quaid plays a banker who, unlike Hollywood studios, cannot feel pain.

Rounding out the top 10 were:

"The Alto Knights" ($3.2 million)

"The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie" ($1.8 million)

"The Monkey" ($1.5 million)

"Dog Man" ($1.5 million)

"The Last Supper" ($1.3 million)

C.Conti--PV

Jersey Boys Anniversary Tour Opens in Birmingham With Gritty Account of Crime and Fame

The 20th-anniversary tour of Jersey Boys has opened at Birmingham’s Alexandra Theatre, offering a gritty and unvarnished look at the Four Seasons’ journey. The production details the band's turbulent rise from New Jersey petty criminals to international rock stars, highlighting the complex personal costs behind their musical success.

UBC professor describes police call after Galloway remark as act of care

VANCOUVER — A University of British Columbia professor has testified about a colleague’s decision to call police to visit Steven Galloway after he was accused of sexual assault, describing it as an “act of care” toward the author, who had spoken of killing himself. Galloway, who is suing his accuser and others in a defamation trial centred on the unproven allegations, has described his subsequent committal to a hospital in the United States as “terrifying.

Pallade Veneta - New 'Snow White' tops N.America box office despite grumpy reviews