"West Side Story"'s Rachel Zegler Will Play Snow White In a Live-Action Remake

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Does the name Rachel Zegler ring a bell? If not, expect to hear it everywhere soon. The 20-year-old Colombian-American actress will play Maria in the Steven Spielberg-directed remake of West Side Story, set to be released in December 2021 following delays.

And in more recent news, Zegler has been cast to play Snow White in Disney's upcoming live-action remake of the 1938 classic. According to Deadline, the film will begin filming in 2o22. Director Marc Webb told the publication, “Rachel’s extraordinary vocal abilities are just the beginning of her gifts. Her strength, intelligence and optimism will become an integral part of rediscovering the joy in this classic Disney fairytale.”

As for the new version of West Side Story, which follows the rivalry between New York street gangs, the Sharks and Jets, Latinx actors will take on the following lead roles: Zegler as Maria, David Alvarez as Bernardo, The Prom and Hamilton's Ariana DeBose as Anita, and Josh Andrés Rivera as Chino.

The newcomers will join Ansel Elgort and Rita Moreno as part of the ensemble. Elgort will take up the role of Tony, the former leader of the Jets who falls in love with Maria, Bernardo's younger sister. And Moreno, who won an Oscar for playing Anita in the 1961 film, will portray Valentina, a reimagined version of the character Doc, the owner of the corner store where Tony works.

Considering this is a role of a lifetime for Zegler, we thought we'd get to know the New Jersey-born performer a little better ahead of her debut.

Rachel Zegler was cast as Maria when she was a senior in high school.

According to Deadline, Zegler saw the casting call on Twitter in January 2018 and submitted a video of herself singing two hits from the film, "Tonight" and "Me Siento Hermosa (I Feel Pretty)." At the time, Zegler was a 16-year-old senior at Immaculate Conception High School in Lodi, NJ. Ultimately, Zegler's audition stood out among the 30,000 other people competing for the role.

“I am so thrilled to be playing the iconic role of Maria alongside this amazing cast,” Zegler told Deadline in 2019. “West Side Story was the first musical I encountered with a Latina lead character. As a Colombian-American, I am humbled by the opportunity to play a role that means so much to the Hispanic community.” Zegler's mother is Colombian and her father is Polish.

Her cover of "Shallow" from A Star Is Born went viral.

After people claimed her YouTube cover of Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga's hit song, "Shallow," filmed in a bathroom, was altered using auto-tune, she tweeted another video of herself singing the song in an empty school auditorium. It became an internet sensation and so far has garnered over eight million views on Twitter.

This won't actually be her first time playing Maria.

Zegler played Maria during a production at New Jersey's BergenPAC in 2017. Clips from the 2017 show, which Zegler posted to YouTube, give a preview of her upcoming performance in the West Side Story movie.

Her YouTube channel is a gold mine of songs.

She's sung “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen, “Chandelier” by Sia, “I Dreamed a Dream” from Les Misérables and countless others.

She writes her own music, too.

While her cover songs have gone viral, Zegler also writes original music. She called her song "Elegy in May" a "love letter to the people who love a bit too hard but not in a possessive way."

She called Steven Spielberg an "angel of a man."

When filming for West Side Story wrapped in September 2019, Zegler took to Instagram to reflect on her experiences. “To the craziest experience a girl could possibly have in this world—thank you,” Zegler wrote on Instagram. “I have learned so much from my time in West Side Story; I’m not sure if any words will ever be good enough to sum up just how amazing it was. To my fellow cast mates, crew members, creative team and collaborators, and everyone in-between—we made a movie. A real movie! I don’t think I can fully comprehend that yet; I’ll let you know when I can.”

She gave Spielberg a special shoutout, calling him "my creative guardian" and an "absolute angel of a man." She wrote, "Thank you beyond words for taking a chance on me. Your generosity will never cease to amaze me."

You can follow her on Instagram.

To stay updated on her projects, check out her Instagram.

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