Whether you like the new Snow White film or you hate it, it's hard to escape the debate around its lead actress, Rachel Zegler.

The 23-year-old star has dominated conversation about the film, as people either blame her for its poor reviews or leap to her defence, saying she's being unfairly maligned.

And this debate is not new for Zegler.

Way before Snow White came out, she has been at the centre of the storm, with many criticising her take on the original film and her political views, including those on US President Donald Trump and his voters.

Others defended her, and expressed discomfort at seeing such a young actress suffer a pile-on.

Film critic Kelechi Ehenulo calls Zegler a victim of "culture wars", and warns actors from underrepresented backgrounds (Zegler is Latina) often find themselves becoming "targets for backlash".

So how did we get to this point – and where does Zegler go from here?

Let's start with the film itself.

Disney's live-action version of the classic fairy tale Snow White was released earlier this month, and has faced a slew of underwhelming reviews (the Observer's Wendy Ide described it as "toe-curlingly terrible".) US reviewers have been somewhat more positive – but despite it topping the North America box office chart, it hasn't made as much money as expected.

On social media, some people have been quick to point their finger at Zegler, arguing she hampered the release.

They include Jonah Platt, the son of Snow White producer Marc Platt. Earlier this week, he took aim at Zegler in a fiery social media post. It has since been deleted, but was screenshotted by multiple outlets including the New York Post.

He said Zegler had "[dragged] her personal politics" into the film's promotional campaign,........

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