When Disney Clashed With British Censors Over 1937's "Snow White"

In general, when it comes to remakes, Disney's second attempt at Snow White hasn't been well-received so far.

Since its release earlier this month, the ' woke Its production has turned out to be disliked by audiences.

The absence of a prince, the use of computer-generated dwarves rather than real actors and inflammatory comments made by the film's star, Rachel Ziegler, have all generated bad publicity.

However, as far back as early 1938, when Walt Disney’s initial movie was achieving tremendous success among both kids and adults in the United States, trouble loomed for its impending release in Britain.

The BBFC required that certain frightening scenes be removed from the movie.

When Disney's UK distributor refused, saying it would be 'sacrilege' to edit the production, Snow White was released with an 'Adult' rating, meaning children aged under 16 could not go and see it alone.

The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) felt that the scene where the Evil Queen changes into a menacing 'old hag' witch was overly terrifying. Additionally, they believed that depicting Snow White fleeing through the eerie forest went beyond what would be suitable for children.

In response to the BBFC's stance, Walt Disney expressed his disappointment to the Mail, stating, "It’s a shame," and went on to say, "I just don’t get it."

Snow White and the Seven Dwarves was Disney's first feature-length animation.

The narrative of the naive and virtuous Snow White as she seeks her prince while confronting her malevolent stepmother originated as a 1812 fairy tale penned by the Brothers Grimm.

The film ran way over budget, with its eventual $1.75million cost - more than £100million in today's money - being seven times the original budget.

Twenty-five songs were written for the film, but only seven made it into the final cut.

"Someday My Prince Will Come" and "Whistle While You Work" continue to be timeless tunes.

Snow White had its debut at the Carthay Circle Theatre in Hollywood during December 1937 and immediately became a huge success.

In New York, the film broke all records. It remained at the Radio City Music Hall for five weeks, with hundreds of thousands of people - many of them children - going to see it.

However, in Britain, the BBFC remained firm in their stance.

In response to the film receiving an Adult rating, Walt Disney stated to the Mail, "That's quite a shame."

We created this image for people of all ages. Here, there hasn’t been any age limitation, and I haven’t come across anybody who mentioned finding anything scary about it.

But then, if your community has decided on this course of action—well, I suppose there’s not much we can do to change it. Still, I find it puzzling.

He stated: "At present, I do not see anything in Snow White that could be termed awful or horrifying."

'In one particular moment, the Queen transforms into an outrageous figure, yet the children find it delightful.'

When the movie finally premiered in London in February 1938, it was met with an enthusiastic response.

The Mail's Seton Margrave provided coverage from the exhibition at the New Gallery on Regent Street.

He stated: "Again and again, moments in the film sparked joyful laughter among the spectators and elicited applause, particularly the segments depicting the rabbits in the woods as they encounter Snow White."

The critic commented: 'The clapping at the conclusion of the film indicated that "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" is set to have a successful run at the New Gallery, potentially matching the record-breaking stint it recently finished in New York.'

'It was generally agreed by the audience that Walt Disney has made an exquisitely beautiful picture.'

In 1953, RKO Radio Pictures, the UK distributor, requested that the BBFC review the film's mature rating with plans for a potential re-release the next year.

The BBFC stated that a U rating could be granted by removing parts of the scenes they found frightening.

The request was to minimize Snow White’s traversal through the haunted forest and remove the screams as well as the visuals of grasping hands.

It aimed to make the scene depicting the evil queen turning into a witch shorter and intended to decrease the associated audio effects.

The BBFC also requested that the image of a skeleton be taken out and that the sounds of the witch screaming as she tumbled from the rocks be eliminated.

Nevertheless, RKO chose not to make any alterations. Instead, they decided to appeal the BBFC's decision to the relevant local authorities in the areas where the film was scheduled to be screened.

Certain councils permitted the uncensored screening of the film under a new U rating, whereas others opted to retain the original classification.

In 1964, when the movie was scheduled for yet another re-release, Disney finally agreed to implement the edits proposed back in 1953, allowing the film to be shown uncut in all areas designated as "U."

In 1987, when the movie underwent another classification review for its 50th-anniversary release, the earlier edits were reinstated, resulting in a U rating being assigned.

A report compiled by censors noted the terrifying sequences but commented: "Disney makes an effort to balance most fearful moments with comedic or musical interludes, so we could comfortably classify this as a 'U,' even without considering the youthful viewership that seemed to manage these frightening parts quite adeptly."

'The company rightly requested 'U' for this masterpiece of animation and we are happy to give it to them.'

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