It’s a classic of the silver screen: forbidden love, rival street gangs with different ethnic backgrounds, the swaggering style of ’50s cool. On the 60th anniversary of the 1961 film’s original release date, the Jets and the Sharks cross paths again in Steven Spielberg‘s remake of “West Side Story.”
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Loosely based on “Romeo & Juliet,” “West Side Story” was first a Broadway sensation depicting young love and gang violence on the streets of 1957 New York. Robert Wise and Jerome Robbin‘s musical received 11 nominations at the Oscars, winning 10 of them, including Best Picture.
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It should be a slam dunk, no? Well, it’s been delayed nearly a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they said. Still, the truth is that’s only half the story, and 20th Century Studios has surely been wanting as much distance between this movie and its star Ansel Elgort’s 2020 controversies. That summer, a woman on Twitter accused Elgort of sexually assaulting her when she was a teenager. He denied any assault but admitted he behaved poorly after the breakup, admitting he ghosted her. The actor has rarely been seen since, deleted, or abandoned all his social media accounts. All of this is probably something of an uphill battle for 20th Century Studio in terms of marketing and promotion, a challenge to say the least.
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He headlines the film with and Rachel Zegler. Behind them is a massive cast, including David Alvarez, Ariana DeBose, Mike Faist, and Corey Stoll.
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The film also stars Brian d’Arcy James, Curtiss Cook, Ezra Menas, Ben Cook, Sean Harrison Jones, Patrick Higgins, Josh Andrés Rivera, Julius Anthony Rubio, Maddie Ziegler, and Ana Isabelle. Rita Moreno, who played Anita in the 1961 film, returns in this film to support Valentina, synthesizing characters from the play and film.
Tony Kushner, who previously worked with Spielberg on 2005’s “Munich” and 2012’s “Lincoln,” provides the screenplay for “West Side Story.” David Newman adapted Leonard Bernstein‘s original score for this version, while Gustav Dudamel conducted the orchestra. Justin Peck provides the film’s choreography.
How will Spielberg’s take on the classic musical measure up to the 1961 film? How will audiences take to the return of Elgort, who has been absent from the pubic eye for over a year? Find out on December 10, when the film opens everywhere nationwide.
7/27/21 Update: 20th Century Studios has released a new special look teaser, not quite a trailer, but something extra.