The first trailer for Steven Spielberg's West Side Story remake is here. West Side Story began as a musical created by Arthur Laurents, Stephen Sondheim, and Leonard Bernstein as a new take on William Shakespeare's classic story Romeo and Juliet. Set in a 1950s New York, West Side Story follows the rivalry between two gangs, the Jets and the Sharks. The Broadway musical was adapted for the big screen in 1961 by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins, and the original movie became a classic after winning 10 Academy Awards.
50 years after West Side Story's success, legendary director Steven Spielberg is bringing the beloved story back to theaters in a new way. The movie is his first musical and features a young and diverse cast, led by Baby Driver star Ansel Elgort as Tony and newcomer Rachel Zegler as Maria. They are at the center of West Side Story's love story, but it also includes Ariana DeBose as Anita, David Alvarez as Bernardo, Mike Faist as Riff, Corey Stoll and Brian D'Arcy as police officers, and original West Side Story movie star Rita Moreno as Valentina. Now, after Disney was forced to push the movie back a full year due to COVID-19, the first trailer has officially arrived.
After previous reports that the first trailer for Steven Spielberg's West Side Story remake would air during the 93rd Academy Awards, the debut footage has officially been released. The trailer highlights Spielberg's take on the classic musical ahead of its December 10, 2021 release exclusively in theaters.
The first trailer for West Side Story provides an intriguing tease of Steven Spielberg's latest directorial effort. What might surprise most fans of the musical or original movie is the lack of emphasis on the music. There are hints of West Side Story's songs and Moreno singing "Somewhere," but the first trailer holds back on fully revealing how Spielberg is staging and shooting the dance sequences. This could just be for the teaser trailer, and future marketing materials may highlight the full scope of this new West Side Story.
It is intriguing to see how Disney and Fox are already marketing West Side Story. The trailer makes it look and feel more like a traditional Spielberg movie instead of a musical. This footage leans heavily into the Jets vs Sharks rivalry and only teases the romance that emerges between Tony and Maria. Spielberg potentially leaning more into the drama would certainly help differentiate his West Side Story from the original, but fans of the musical shouldn't expect the remake to be totally devoid of the expected musical elements. Instead, Disney and Fox might just be trying to position West Side Story as more of a drama so it can have a major presence at next year's Oscars.
Source: Disney
