‘West Side Story’ Star Rachel Zegler Cast as ‘Snow White’ in Disney Remake

Rachel Zegler, star of Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story, has been cast as Snow White in Disney’s upcoming live-action adaptation of the classic fairytale, Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs.

After the news was first reported by Deadline, Zegler took to Twitter to enthusiastically tweet about being cast as Snow White, and shared a tweet from 2017, which featured photos of herself dressed as Princess Ariel, with the caption, “i wanna be a real disney princess.”

hahahahhahahahaha https://t.co/mJOOsp2SAB

— rachel zegler (she/her/hers) (@rachelzegler) June 22, 2021

“I HAVE MANIFESTED MY ENTIRE LIFE I THINK I THINK,” the actress wrote in a follow-up tweet.

I HAVE MANIFESTED MY ENTIRE LIFE I THINK I THINK

— rachel zegler (she/her/hers) (@rachelzegler) June 22, 2021

Zegler also tweeted a video of herself with Snow White, alongside the caption, “homegirl we have LOTS to catch up on.”

homegirl we have LOTS to catch up on pic.twitter.com/gtNsrpITm0

— rachel zegler (she/her/hers) (@rachelzegler) June 22, 2021

“yes i am snow white no i am not bleaching my skin for the role,” added Zegler — who is half Colombian — in another tweet.

yes i am snow white no i am not bleaching my skin for the role

— rachel zegler (she/her/hers) (@rachelzegler) June 22, 2021

“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,” said Marc Webb, who will be directing the Snow White remake, which is still untitled.

The actress is making her feature film debut playing Maria in Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story, and will also appear in the Warner Bros. superhero film Shazam! Fury of the Gods.

Zegler is not the only non-white actor recently cast to portray popular Disney characters who are traditionally cast with white actors.

In 2019, actress Halle Bailey, half of the singing sister duo Chloe x Halle, was cast as Ariel in the Disney live-action adaptation of The Little Mermaid.

That same year, actor and LGBTQ activist Billy Porter was cast for the role of the Fairy Godmother in James Corden’s live-action movie musical Cinderella.

You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.