The mood was grim Sunday on the Disney lot asSnow Whiteopened behind expectations to an estimated $43 million domestically. Globally, the live-action remake of the iconic 1937 film was expected to clear $100 million, but instead came in at $87.3 million.

Final weekend numbers released Monday showed the domestic opening coming in lower at $42.2 million; ditto for global. The pic took in $43.9 million overseas for a global start of $86.1 million, according to Comscore.

While those hauls wouldnt normally spell disaster for a female-targeted pic,Snow Whitehas found itself in potential bomb territory because of its hefty production budget of $270 million before another $100 million or so in marketing costs. Based on initial ticket sales and mixed word-of-mouth,Snow Whitemay have trouble getting to $300 million or $400 million globally, well short of a box office safety net of $500 million or more, several rival studios execs and box office pundits tellTHR. (Consider that 2019sDumbo, which debuted to $45 million domestically, topped out at $353 million against a $170 million budget.)

Disney supporters would say if anyone is capable of pulling off a fairy-tale ending, its them. Case-in-point: Over Christmas 2024, many in the media immediately wrote offMufasa: The Lion Kingwhen it opened to $35.4 million domestically. The live-action pic did seven times its opening number, a rare feat, to top out at nearly $718 million globally.Elementalwas another movie that Disney rescued post-release with a five-time multiple before it became a streaming sensation.

The big difference: Those two films werent dogged by underwhelming reviews and so-so exit scores.Snow Whiteis the rare Disney live-action remake that earned a B+ CinemaScore from audiences; almost every film has received some variation of an A grade.

Snow Whitealso had to contend with headlines related to Rachel Zegler, the young lead actress not afraid to speak her mind, even if it meant taking on President Donald Trumps MAGA movement. Far-right conservatives have labeled the film Snow Woke, and sprang into action by disliking trailers and other advertising materials, along with calling for a boycott of the film after Zegler criticized the presidents deportation policies. Several days later, she apologized for the tone of the post.

But data shows the average moviegoers may be paying far less attention to the political dynamics than social media and news headlines would suggest.

According to a poll conducted by Steve Bucks research firm EnTelligence, 63 percent of ticket sales for family and animated films generally come from blue states, while 37 percent come from cinemas in red states. In the case ofSnow White, it overindexed in red states at 40 percent.

The pattern for general audience followed the same trajectory. Cinemas in blue states generally account for 67 percent of all ticket sales, while red states account for 33 percent. In the case ofSnow White, blue states came in behind the norm at 60 percent of all sales, while red states accounted for 40 percent.

In spite of prerelease concerns of a boycott in red leaning districts, there is no evidence to support that occurred, says EnTelligence founder Buck.

Though Snow White landed a rare B+ CinemaScore, on the plus side, female moviegoers and moviegoers under the age of 18 gave it an A- CinemaScore. And parents and kids polled by market leader PostTrack gave the film four out of five stars, compared to three out of five stars among general audiences. However, only 50 percent of kids said they would tell their friends to see the film right away.

Snow Whites budget steadily rose because of strict COVID protocols, 2023s labor strikes and a fire on set. (One source says the pic was originally greenlit at between $200 million and $210 million.)There were also creative concernsthat required additional work.Snow Whitewas made by the previous regime at Disneys live-action studio, which is now led by David Greenbaum, who suggested certain tweaks when taking the job a year ago.

The world has changed dramatically since Disney decided to make a live-actionSnow White, which seemed like a safe bet considering the success of other Disney live-action princess remakes.Beauty and the Beastastounded when opening to $174.6 million domestically in mid-March 2017, not adjusted for inflation. In the spring of 2015,Cinderelladebuted to $67.9 million domestically against a much more modest budget of $90 million;Maleficentlaunched to $69 million in May 2014 (the sequel,Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, stalled at $37 million).

Comscore chief box office analyst Paul Dergarabedian acknowledges that given its hefty budget,Snow Whitedidnt get off to an ideal start. He says its fate in terms of profitability will depend on its long-term playability in theaters, eventual streaming, merchandising, music revenue plus theme park tie-ins.

March 24, 6:40 a.m.: Updated with weekend actuals.