Disney’s Controversial Box Office Bomb Is a Streaming Hit

Another box office flop finds new life in living rooms.

June 13, 2025, 3:44pm

One of Disney’s most notorious box office bombs has found second life on streaming. Just because a film fails in theaters doesn’t mean there isn’t an audience for it. With streaming services giving people easier access to a plethora of titles, it’s become somewhat common for commercial flops to catch on at home. For instance, earlier this year, Mickey 17 (which grossed just $131.8 million worldwide against a $118 million production budget) became the most popular film on HBO Max. Now, Disney is seeing one of their bombs post similar results after it was made available to stream.

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The film in question is the live-action Snow White remake. According to data from FlixPatrol, which charts popularity on streaming services, the movie is currently the No. 1 film on Disney+. It is well ahead of the original animated Lilo & Stitch and new release Predator: Killer of Killers.

Snow White only hit Disney+ earlier this week, just a few months after its theatrical premiere. Hamstrung by underwhelming reviews and numerous controversies (ranging from everything to the film’s portrayal of the seven dwarves to stars Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot’s opposing views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict), Snow White grossed just $205.6 million worldwide against a budget in the range of $240-270 million. It is one of Disney’s lowest-grossing live-action remakes to date.

Disney was definitely hoping Snow White would have a stronger showing in theaters. The remake is just one of a few of the studio’s releases that have disappointed at the box office. Two Marvel films — Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts* — struggled during their respective runs. Fortunately for Disney, Lilo & Stitch is on track to pass the $1 billion mark soon, softening the blow.

Snow White was never deemed a must-see on the big screen, especially when the mixed reviews started to come in. That’s why it wasn’t much of a draw in theaters. With shorter theatrical windows, viewers can be a bit more selective about what they go see at the multiplex. If they deem something isn’t worth the trip to the theater (not to mention the cost), it’s easy to wait for it to become available on streaming. For those curious to see what all the fuss is about, catching Snow White for “free” at home is a more appealing prospect than going out to see it in theaters.

Disney obviously would have preferred if Snow White was a box office blockbuster and a streaming hit, but the studio can take solace in the strong streaming numbers. Still, this doesn’t mean the studio should discard any lessons learned by Snow White‘s performance. Disney can still find success in remaking some of its animated classics (see: Lilo & Stitch), but it needs to be much more careful about which projects get the green light. When Lilo & Stitch hits Disney+ at some point, it’ll be a smash at home after dominating the box office in the early part of summer. That’s the formula Disney wants for all its films.