Actress exposes Disney’s ‘painfully mean’ move

An actress who starred in one of Disney’s most infamous film flops has made a shocking allegation about the studio’s conduct.

Actress Elle Keats in Newsies.

Actress Ele Keats says Disney sent her “painfully mean” reviews of the film Newsies after it flopped at the box office.

The starlet, who was 20 years old when she appeared in the 1992 movie musical, made the sensational claim in an interview with Insiderpublished on Thursday.

“I got mailed this, like, phone book of horrible reviews, including some personal-attack type of reviews,” the actress, now 48, claimed.

Keats said it was “really hard” to read the “horrific” criticism, given that she was a budding young actress at the time.

Keats (R) starred with a young Christian Bale (L) in the 1992 film flop. Picture: SNAP

“I think that someone in the press department thought maybe I would enjoy reading them [the mean reviews],” the brunette stated. “I don’t know why.”

Meanwhile, Keats’ Newsies co-star Arvie Lowe Jr. similarly told Insider that he also was sent bad reviews from Disney.

He claimed the reviews came in the mail every week and featured critiques asserting that the acting was “subpar”.

The Post has contacted Disney for comment on the actors’ allegations.

Newsies, which starred Christian Bale in the lead role, was a box office bomb, earning less than $US3 million ($A4 million) off a $US15 million ($A20 million) budget.

Keats claims Disney sent her a big book of her worst reviews after the movie flopped. Picture: Getty

However, despite being an initial disappointment, the movie has become a cult classic in the 30 years since it was released.

The film was adapted into a Broadway play in 2012, and it ran for more than two years and scooped two Tony Awards.

Keats told Insider that she believes the 1992 film was ahead of its time, saying: “If it could have come out even eight years later, it would be wildly successful – 10 or 12 years later, it would’ve been a smash hit.”

The actress, who is based in Los Angeles, now primarily works as a jewellery designer with clients including Diane Keaton, Cameron Diaz and Jessica Biel.

She still acts on the side, having appeared in episodes of NCIS, Cold Case and CSI.

This article originally appeared on Page Six and was reproduced with permission

Originally published as Actress exposes Disney’s ‘painfully mean’ move