Rachel Zegler

Rachel Anne Zegler is an American actress and vocalist who gained prominent public recognition for starring as María in Steven Spielberg's 2021 cinematic adaptation of the musical West Side Story. Her performance in the project earned her a Golden Globe Award. Since her debut, she has appeared in several high-profile feature films, including the superhero entry Shazam! Fury of the Gods, the dystopian prequel The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, and the live-action musical fantasy Snow White. In addition to her screen roles, she has performed in major theatrical productions on both Broadway and the West End.

Zegler was born on May 3, 2001, in Hackensack, New Jersey, to Gina and Craig Zegler, and was raised alongside an older sister in Clifton. Her mother's family holds Colombian heritage, while her father is of Polish descent. Named after a character from the television series Friends, she developed a passion for stage performance at an early age after seeing a musical on Broadway. She pursued performing arts throughout her youth, taking acting and vocal lessons. While attending Immaculate Conception High School, she headlined numerous school musical productions, garnering multiple local award nominations before graduating as salutatorian in 2019. Between 2015 and 2023, she also maintained an active YouTube channel.

Her professional breakthrough occurred in early 2018 when she successfully auditioned for Steven Spielberg's West Side Story. Selected from over 30,000 applicants after submitting singing audition videos, the project marked her feature film debut. Upon its late 2021 release, her portrayal received wide critical acclaim, earning her the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy alongside a nomination from the Critics' Choice Movie Awards. At age 20, she became the youngest winner in that Golden Globe category, as well as the first actress of Colombian descent to win the award.

Following her debut, Zegler expanded her screen career across multiple film genres. In 2023, she co-starred in the superhero project Shazam! Fury of the Gods and portrayed the lead character Lucy Gray Baird in the box-office success The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. She subsequently voiced Princess Ellian in the animated feature Spellbound, appeared in the comedy-drama Y2K, and played the title role in Disney's live-action Snow White. Though Snow White generated public discourse surrounding casting choices and cast statements prior to its release, critics commended her individual performance.

Zegler made her Broadway debut playing Juliet in a musical production of Romeo and Juliet running from late 2024 to early 2025. Later that year, she performed the title role of Eva Perón in a West End revival of Evita at the London Palladium, a performance that earned her the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical. Her stage work continued with concert performances in London, a live-recorded anniversary engagement in The Last Five Years, and planned future projects including feature films such as She Gets It from Me, Octet, Last Dance, and NDA, alongside an anticipated Broadway transfer of Evita.

Throughout her career, Zegler has received industry accolades such as inclusion in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list and being named a Breakthrough Entertainer by AP Entertainment. In her personal life, she has spoken about her mental health struggles and personal influences, while her public platform has included involvement in charitable and political advocacy.