ENTERTAINMENT'West Side Story' Star Rachel Zegler Cast As 'Snow White' In Disney Remake
West Side Story star Rachel Zegler has landed another monumental role, this time in the upcoming remake of the Disney classic Snow White.
Although Steven Spielberg's retelling of West Side Story is not slated for release until December, the 20-year-old is already making waves in Hollywood.
Marc Webb will reportedly direct the new live-action film. "Rachel’s extraordinary vocal abilities are just the beginning of her gifts," he said in a statement. "Her strength, intelligence and optimism will become an integral part of rediscovering the joy in this classic Disney fairytale."
While Zegler's auditions are said to have been impressive, footage from West Side Story is reportedly what pushed the studio into giving her the part.
According to Deadline, the original 1938 Disney flick — which was based on the Brothers Grimm fairytale — will expand upon the story and music from what was the company's first-ever animated feature film.
Marc Platt will reportedly be producing. Benj Pasek and Justin Paul — who are renowned for their work on The Greatest Showman and La La Land — have been recruited to pen new songs. Although the project has been in development since 2016, Deadline reported that the studio took its time to make sure the music is right. The early returns from Pasek and Paul are said to have been well-received.
"well… hello to a dream come true. 🍎✨," Zegler gushed on Instagram.
Fans and friends took to the comments to congratulate the new Disney princess.
"OMG," Maddie Ziegler gushed.
"Ahhhhhhhhh congratulations this is SOOOOOOOO exciting 🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌," Les Misérables star Samantha Barks commented.
"Amazing. If they're looking for a Sleepy, I know someone. It's me. I'm sleepy. All the time," Ross Butler joked.
Zegler continued to share her excitement about landing the role on social media. She shared a photo of herself dressed as Ariel from The Little Mermaid that she posted on Twitter in 2017, where she wrote "i wanna be a real disney princess." "hahahahhahahahaha," the brunette beauty added.
"I HAVE MANIFESTED MY ENTIRE LIFE I THINK I THINK," the actress gushed in another tweet.
"homegirl we have LOTS to catch up on," she captioned a clip of herself meeting a Snow White character performer when Zegler was younger.
Production is reportedly slated to begin in 2022.
In the meantime, fans also have the live-action remakes of The Little Mermaid (starring Halle Bailey as Ariel) and Pinocchio (starring Tom Hanks) to look forward to.
