Disney's upcoming live-action remake of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs has certainly not been the House of Mouse's smoothest production. Following some recent controversy over the possible inclusion of dwarfs in the story, it's now been reported that a fire had broken out on the set, located at England's Pinewood Studios. As reported by The Sun, footage and images of the blaze have made their way to social media, giving us a clear look at a large fire next to a Snow White-style cottage.In the footage, a witness can be heard remarking: "A Tree caught on fire, I don't know how." Before knowing the full extent of the damage, it can be horrifying to watch with the large flames and black smoke overtaking the set. The good news is that all of the crew members were able to escape the area safely and nobody was harmed in the incident, though it probably gave many of them a good fright.
One witness told The Sun, “A set made up of a lot of wood, and trees, etc was currently being built in the Richard Attenborough stage. Rumor is a piece of set has caught alight and spread across the rest of the set. Some crew in the studio were shaken but evacuated without injury.”
“It was just mental," says another witness. "I didn’t see it start but I was told first a tree went up. By the time I got there the flames were massive, going right up to the ceiling. Then bits of the set started falling into flames and the thatched cottage started lighting up.”
This is nothing new for the movie industry. Pinewood alone has had two other instances of fires breaking out on movie sets, with one occurring on Ridley Scott's 1984 film Legend and another happening on Daniel Craig's first James Bond movie Casino Royale in 2006.
Snow White Has Had Its Share of Controversy
This project has already seen some issues before cameras even started rolling. The casting of Rachel Zegler as the titular character had drawn some criticism as Snow White had never been depicted as of Latin descent. Game of Thrones actor Peter Dinklage also threw some shade at the film, criticizing Disney for casting a Latina actress for Snow White while still allegedly reinforcing negative stereotypes with the dwarf characters.
“I was a little taken aback when they were very proud to cast a Latina actress as Snow White," Dinklage said on Marc Maron's "WTF" podcast. "You’re still telling the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Take a step back and look at what you’re doing there. It makes no sense to me... You’re progressive in one way and you’re still making that f--king backwards story about seven dwarfs living in a cave together, what the f--k are you doing man? Have I done nothing to advance the cause from my soapbox? I guess I’m not loud enough.”
It has since been reported that Disney may be using "magical creatures" in place of dwarfs, but what exactly will happen with Snow White's seven friends isn't yet clear. Along with Rachel Zegler in the lead role, the film stars Gal Gadot as the Evil Queen. The movie does not yet have a release date.