Disneyland revamps Snow White ride – but some slam ‘non-consensual’ kiss scene

Disneyland has revamped it’s popular Snow White ride – but the update hasn’t gone down well with everyone.

The theme park in Anaheim, California, welcomed guests back on Friday after closing for more than a year due to the pandemic and health restrictions.

Thrill-seekers were able to try the overhauled version of “Snow White’s Scary Journey” for the first time.

Unlike the original ride, the new "Snow White's Enchanted Wish" experience ends on the “true love’s kiss” scene from the 1937 film.

In the classic movie, the Prince smooches sleeping Snow White to break a curse the Evil Queen has placed on her.

But as the character doesn’t get consent before planting the kiss, some don’t think the moment should have been included in the ride.

An SFGate reviewer said: “A kiss he gives to her without her consent, while she's asleep, which cannot possibly be true love if only one person knows it's happening.”

The critic added it would have been better to re-imagine the ride as the theme park had done with controversial Jungle Cruise and Splash Mountain rides, which some saw as racially insensitive.

They wrote: “It's hard to understand why the Disneyland of 2021 would choose to add a scene with such old fashioned ideas of what a man is allowed to do to a woman, especially given the company's current emphasis on removing problematic scenes from rides like Jungle Cruise and Splash Mountain.

“Why not re-imagine an ending in keeping with the spirit of the movie and Snow White's place in the Disney canon, but that avoids this problem?”

The criticism comes after feminist academic Kazue Muta argued Snow White could “promote sexual violence”.

Back in 2017, the 61-year-old professor at Japan’s Osaka University tweeted: “When you think rationally about 'Snow White' and 'Sleeping Beauty,' that tell of a 'princess being woken up by the kiss of a prince,' they are describing sexual assault on an unconscious person.”

Her tweet garnered more than 1,300 likes.

But not everyone agrees with the notion that Snow White deserves the backlash.

On Twitter, many have defended the ride and the “true love’s kiss” scene.

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One commenter said: “Snow White already knows when the curse is laid on her and gives consent by waking up.

“If you don’t like it, don’t go.”

Another commented: “So I heard everyone’s complaining about Disneyland’s new ride ending of Snow White.

“People have been begging for years for Disney to have that kiss and actually complete the story… so what’s the real goal here?”

Others have gushed about the revamped ride and said they prefer it to the old version.

One responder said: “Snow White’s Enchanted Wish was fantastic. Great addition to the ride.”

Another wrote: “Snow White’s Enchanted Wish was fantastic. A HUGE improvement from what it was.”

And a third gushed: “That end scene with the Prince waking Snow White is gorgeous.”

Daily Star has contacted Disneyland for comment.

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