I've been thinking about the new Snow White movie recently. In my opinion, all remakes struggle because they have to contend with the nostalgia of the first version. The movie can't just be a little better; it has to be orders of magnitude better (like Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy).
Instead, I think the winning strategy is to tell an adjacent story.
For example, Maleficent, Wicked, and Cruella are the origin stories of Sleeping Beauty, The Wizard of Oz, and 101 Dalmatians. It lets the original stand as-is and builds depth into the villain (while often flipping the original's moral framing).
There are also origin stories of side characters:
- Finding Dory
- Minions
- Lightyear
And then there are spin-offs:
- The Lego Batman Movie
- Venom
- Planes
- Frasier
These tend to be more lighthearted, which is fine with me.
One obvious concept for Snow White would be the origin story of Queen Grimhilde (aka The Evil Queen). It would follow her journey from royal bride to feared sorceress. Maybe she descends into madness after being betrayed (another moral framing flip). Perhaps her enchanted mirror becomes her only confidant, but ultimately her tormentor. I'd call it "Mirror, Mirror" or something catchy like that.
I'm in! Who doesn't love a well-told anti-hero movie these days?!
The Seven Dwarves
However, one fascinating area to explore is the seven dwarves.
For example, you could go gritty:
Before they met Snow White, they escaped a brutal war in the mountain kingdoms. They were once proud gemcrafters to royalty, but now they live in exile. And they were part of a sprawling underground civilization before the war. Perhaps the gems aren't just pretty but store magic (that was ultimately used in the war). This "band of brothers" swore never to get involved in "human affairs" again... until Snow White.
But I think you could also tell a super fun origin story.
Hear me out: what if they were former thieves?!
Doc is a genius strategist with alchemical skills, but society has rejected him because of a massive mistake. (I know it's vague, but let's keep rolling.)
So, he wants to break into the castle's enchanted vault to steal the Heartstone — a magical gem powerful enough to keep someone eternally youthful and powerful — to change how he looks and effectively create a new identity (it's a selfish reason).
But there's a catch: the only time the vault is being predictably opened is for a wedding ceremony of the King's new wife. His wife died during childbirth, and he found a new wife/stepmother. Unbeknownst to all, she's only marrying to get access to the Heartstone.
To pull off the heist, he gathers six outcast minors.
- Grumpy: A no-nonsense bruiser, former royal guard
- Happy: A charming con man with a winning smile
- Sleepy: Has prophetic dreams, but is unreliable
- Sneezy: Can literally sniff out magic traps
- Bashful: Quiet and stealthy
- Dopey: Silent, but brilliant with gadgets and explosives. A wild card.
I'm making this up without a complete storyline; don't get upset at me.
Act 1 would be recruiting and planning.
Doc has been out of the game until he hears about the Queen's vault. He gathers the old crew - each one reluctant, hiding in exile, or eking out a mundane life. He promises each of them a redo in life because of the stone.
Act 2 would be the setup and challenges.
They do training and recon missions. There are magical hiccups, run-ins with guards, unstable tunnels, and enchanted traps. They discover the magic mirror sees everything, so they must blind it to their actions.
Act 3 would be the heist.
It's a multi-layered plan with parallel timelines. Perhaps Bashful almost sells them out but decides not to. Or, the entire time, Dopey has been accidentally solving problems, but now he deliberately saves the day!
But then they decide NOT to keep the gem and use it to save the newborn princess's life (which, unknown to them, was threatened by the soon-to-be-queen). And an obvious side effect is that it turns her skin as white as snow while protecting her from the Queen trying to kill her in the future (hence the huntsman and the "sleeping death" in the cartoon).
Ultimately, we see them vanish into the woods without rewards, titles, or a redo. But they're content with their decision and start whistling as they go away...
I think some fun titles could be:
- Seven and the Stone
- Once Upon a Heist
- The Seven
That's my idea. Disney, you can DM me for where to send the royalty check. ;)