Entertainment

Trailer for Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story gets first showing at Oscars

Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler star in the adaptation.
Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler star in the adaptation. Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler star in the adaptation.

The atmospheric first trailer for Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of West Side Story was released during Sunday night’s Oscars.

Starring Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler as Tony and Maria, two lovers trapped on opposite sides of a New York gang war, the film will premiere later this year after being delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Viewers of the Academy Awards were treated to a first showing of the 90-second trailer, which features little dialogue and a slow version of Somewhere.

Rita Moreno, who won an Academy Award for playing Anita in the 1961 film adaptation, is also seen as Valentino, a gender-swapped version of the character Doc.

West Side Story, originally a 1957 Broadway musical, marks the first time Spielberg has directed a musical film.

It will feature the songs from the 1961 version, with a new screenplay inspired by the original stage musical.

It is scheduled for release on December 10, exactly 60 years after the original film was released in the US.