Israeli actress Gal Gadot and her “Snow White” co-star, Rachel Zegler, whose pro-Palestine activism is speculated to have driven a wedge in their relationship, appeared to put any bad blood behind them as they reunited at the Oscars to present an award together. 

The two celebrities traipsed on stage to the sound of an instrumental rendition of the “Snow White” song “Some Day my Prince Will Come” and presented the nominees for the “Best Visual Effects” category. Ms. Gadot, wearing a red Prada gown and Ms. Zegler, in a light pink frock by Christian Dior, fulfilled their Oscar duties without a hitch. Although the duo appeared cordial, they hardly glanced at each other during the ordeal. 

Their joint appearance caused a stir online and commenters took jabs at both Ms. Gadot and Ms. Zegler. “Rachel Zegler is pro-Hamas and Gal Gadot is Israeli,” one user, @meganmichelle_s, wrote on X. “If I were Gal Gadot I would have pushed her off stage. How did she have that composure?” 

On the flip side, another user, @finallgirls, shared a video of an enraged woman pushing a pastor off a stage, adding the caption: “what rachel zegler should’ve done to gal gadot #oscars.” One commenter responded to her post with the question: “i don’t mean this at all in a rude way i’m just genuinely curious what did gal gadot do?” To which the poster replied: “she’s a zionist and was part of the idf.” 

Ms. Zegler, who plays Snow White in Disney’s upcoming live action reimagination of the classic fairytale story, stirred up controversy over the summer after she shared comments on social media that appeared to egg on the antisemitic backlash to her co-star’s casting. 

Shortly after Disney dropped the film’s trailer online, the 23-year-old star took to X to thank her fans “for the love and for 120m views on our trailer in just 24 hours” before adding on the seemingly unrelated message: “always remember, free Palestine.” 

The post quickly went viral online, with many commenters calling out her post as an inherent denunciation of her Israeli co-star, Ms. Gadot, who plays the Wicked Queen. As a major Hollywood star who has been outspoken in her public support of Israel, Ms. Gadot faced antisemitic attacks online since Disney announced her casting. 

While some of the commenters voiced their support for Ms. Zegler’s pro-Palestinian message, her post was overwhelmingly flooded with criticism and support for Ms. Gadot. Some commenters were quick to point out the irony in that the young actress got her big break when famed director Stephen Spielberg — who is both Jewish and a Zionist — selected her to star in his blockbuster remake of “West Side Story.”

Followers of Ms. Gadot speculated that she responded to the controversy with a quote she shared on her Instagram from Martin Luther King Jr.: “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” Above it, Ms. Gadot wrote the line, “Only love can truly save the world,” followed by her signature in Hebrew.

The social media debacle was just one bad press incident for Ms. Zegler who found herself in hot water with the network as early as 2023 when, during a series of interviews, she criticized the Disney classic film for furthering sexist tropes. In one conversation, Ms. Zegler described the dynamic between Snow White and Prince Charming as “weird” and denounced the original plotline for being focused on “a love story with a guy who literally stalks her.” In another interview she called the story’s plotline “extremely outdated.”

Although some viewed her comments as empowering and pro-feminist, others were irked by what they viewed as a slight of their beloved movie and an application of “woke” thinking on a medieval fairy tale. In light of the mounting criticism, Ms. Zegler later issued a video apology.

Ms. Zegler drew fresh criticism this November for unleashing a hateful post-election tirade against Trump supporters and voters, who she said she hoped “will never know peace.” Although she quickly apologized for letting her emotions “get the best of me,” the public relations uproar further undermined the upcoming Disney film, which is set to be released later this month. 

According to anonymous sources that spoke with the Daily Mail, Ms. Zegler’s remarks infuriated studio executives who had already labeled her a “loose cannon” and “a nightmare.” They, according to the insider, lamented that it was “too late” to remove her from the film. The movie had already been pushed back to 2025 in part, according to Hollywood observers, to give Disney’s marketing team more time to repair the reputational damage caused by Ms. Zegler’s comments.