Biography
Rachel Zegler is an American actress and singer who has acquired importance for his role as María in the adaptation of Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story”, earning a Golden Globe Award for the best actress in a musical or comedy film. Rachel Zegler began his career by publishing song covers on YouTube, which attracted viral attention. Since then he has expanded his filmography, playing Anthea in “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” (2023) and Lucy Gray Baird in “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes” (2023). Zegler is also destined to act as a titular person in the live-action adaptation of the Disney of “Snow White”, scheduled for 2025. Beyond the film, he made his debut at Broadway as Juliet in a revival of 2024 of “Romeo + Giulietta” and is scheduled to play Eva Perón in a 2025 West End-End of “Evita” in London in London Palladium. Despite his growing career, Rachel Zegler has faced public control, in particular responding to criticisms regarding his vocal performance during a promotional event in Spain for “Snow White”.
Profile
- Name: Rachel Zegler
- Name at birth: Rachel Anne Zegler
- Birthday: May 3, 2001
- Zodiac sign: Bull
- Height: 157 cm
- Instagram: @Rachelzegler
- Twitter: @Rachelzegler
Career
Rachel Zegler began his performance at Immaculate conception High School, where he starred in different musical productions, including Belle in Beauty and the Beast (2016), Ariel in the Little Mermaid (2017), Dorothy Brock in 42nd Street (2018) and Princess Fiona in Shrek the Musical (2019). For all four roles, he received nominations on the Metro Award for the best actress in a leading role. In addition, he played Serena in “Legally Blonde”, Costete in “Les Misérables” and Millie in “Millie completely modern”. His passion for music extends beyond the theater: his YouTube channel (active from 2015 to 2023) has attracted significant attention, with a 2018 cover of “superficial” from “A Star Is Born” by accumulating over 12.2 million views on Twitter.
In 2018, at just 16 years old, Rachel Zegler made the audition for the cinematographic adaptation of Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story”, responding to an open casting call with herself videos that sings “Tonight” and “I Feel Pretty”. It was selected by over 30,000 candidates to interpret Mary, making her film debut. Released in December 2021, the film received critical and public acclaim, and Rachel Zegler won a Golden Globe Award for the best actress: film musical or comedy, making her the first actress of the Colombian descent and the youngest winner of the category at 20 years.
Following his role as Breakout, he played as Anthea in “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” (2023), although the film has received contrasting reviews. Later that year, he played Lucy Gray Baird in “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes” (2023). The film was well welcomed and Indiewire praised her as “absolutely captivating” with a shaded and emotionally compelling performance.
In 2023, Rachel Zegler was originally launched in “Paddington in Peru”, but he had to go out due to the Sag-Aftra strike, with the actress Carla Tous who replaced her. He made a cameo in Kyle Mooney’s “Y2K” A24 film, which was previewed south of Southwest in 2024. That same year, he made his Broadway debut like Juliet in a musical adaptation as “Romeo & Juliet”, directed by Sam Gold with the music of Jack Antronoff.
In 2025, he will explode the main character in the animated music film “Spellbound” (Netflix) and Star as Snow White in the Live-Action Remake of the Disney of the 1937 animated animated. It is also ready to make his debut at the West End as Eva Perón in an awakening of “Avoid”, directed by Jamie Lloyd, who goes from June to September London Palladium.
Personal life
First life
Rachel Zegler was born in Hackensack, New Jersey, Gina and Craig Zegler. It takes its name from Rachel Green, the iconic character of “Friends” and has an older sister named Jacqueline. Her mother is of Colombian origin, with her maternal grandmother immigrated to Barranquilla, Colombia, in the United States in the 1960s, while her father is of Polish origin.
Rachel Zegler grew up in Clifton, New Jersey, where he spoke of having experienced racial discrimination in the comments on his YouTube videos because of his mixed ethnicity. His love for the theater began at the age of four after seeing Beauty and the Beast at Broadway. He obtained his first acting role at 12 years old, playing Shrprintze in a production of “violinist on the roof”. That experience consolidated his passion for acting, leading her to pursue voice and acting lessons to further develop his skills.
Political activism
Since 2021, Rachel Zegler has been vocal in his support for Palestine between the Israeli conflict -Palestinian. In October 2023, he joined the artists4ceasefire and signed a letter by exhorting Joe Biden to push the fire for a cease to put an end to the Israeli bombing of Gaza. He continued to support the cause, encouraging his followers in January 2024 to press pressure on the government leaders to support a fire. In August 2024, he reiterated his position on social media, tweeting, “And always remember, Palestine Libera.”
In November 2024, Zegler spoke against Donald Trump and his supporters, stating that the United States suffers from a deep disease and accusing Trump of threatening democracy. He also published, “May Trump’s supporters, Trump’s voters and Trump himself never know peace”. However, after receiving a repercussions, he later apologized for “having contributed to the negative speech”.
History of appointments
Rachel Zegler had a relationship with the actor Josh Andrés Rivera since 2021. The couple met during the filming of “West Side Story”, where Rachel Zegler played Maria and Josh Rivera played Chino. Their relationship was suggested for the first time through social media posts, with Zegler who calls Rivera his “best friend” and shared affectionate messages. They made their debut on the red carpet in pairs at the 2022 Oscars, publicly confirming their romanticism.
Since then, Rachel Zegler and Josh Rivera have often expressed their support for mutual careers. In the interviews, Rachel Zegler praised Josh Rivera to be a constant source of love and encouragement, calling him a “remarkable human”. The couple also worked together again in “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes”, further strengthening their bond.
Despite maintaining a relatively private relationship, Rachel Zegler occasionally shares glimpses of their love history on social media, celebrating the milestones and expressing gratitude for their partnership.
Before going out with Josh Rivera, there were no publicly known relationships or confirmed past boyfriends. Despite being a nascent star, Rachel Zegler keeps his relatively private personal life, choosing to focus on his career and his defense work.
Net assets
Starting from 2025, Rachel Zegler’s net assets are estimated to be around $ 3 million, accumulated mainly through his thriving acting career.
“Snow White” controversies
Rachel Zegler’s involvement in Disney’s snow-action has been marked by a series of disputes, ranging from the Casting of Consulting to political statements and alleged tensions with co-protagonists. These problems have fueled the public debate and raised concerns about the reception of the film even before its release.
Casting and racial reaction
When Disney announced Zegler, an actress of Colombian and Polish origin, as the protagonist of Snow White, the decision raised a widespread debate. Traditionalists claimed that snow white, originally depicted with “white skin like snow”, should be played by an actress who closely recalls the original animated character.
The conservative commentator Ben Shapiro and other critics have accused Disney of giving priority to diversity for loyalty to the material of origin, with some who go to call him “Woke Shock”. Despite the repercussions, Zegler defended his casting, stressing that his portrait would reflect a fresh and modern version of the character.
Criticism of the original film
In addition to the controversy on the casting, Zegler raised further debates when he expressed concern for the themes of the animated film of 1937. He criticized the original Snow White for his obsolete portrait of romance, in particular the love story between Biancaneve and Prince, who called “strange” and “obsolete”. He also stressed that the new adaptation would focus on Snow White independence rather than his romantic journey.
These comments, although praised by some to modernize the character, alienated the longtime fans of the classic film, who felt they had missed the legacy of Disney.
Tensions on the set with Gal Gadot
Voices of tensions emerged between Zegler and his co-protagonist of Snow White Gal Gadot, who plays the bad queen. Reports suggest that political differences, in particular as regards the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, may have contributed to the relationships between the two actresses.
Speculation intensified when Zegler omitted in particular Gadot in his taxes on social media to the cast of Snow White, leading fans to ask themselves if their employment had become invalidated. However, no actress has publicly faced the items.
Redefine the seven dwarfs
Another controversial decision that surrounded the snow was the choice of Disney to reinvent the seven dwarfs as “magical creatures” instead of taking actors with nanism. This change, made to avoid strengthening stereotypes, had to face criticism from both disability supporters and professionals in the sector, including actor Peter Dinklage, who accused the Disney of having tried to be politically corrected without considering the wider implications for the actors with the Doma. While Disney defended her decision, many fans and defense groups wondered if the move was truly progressive or simply an excessive correction.
Filmography
Movie
- West Side Story (2021)
- Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023)
- The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023)
- Y2k (2024)
- Spell (2024)
- Snow White (2025)
Theater
- Romeo + Giulietta (2024–2025)
- Trisha Paytas big Broadway Dream! (2025)
- Avoid (2025)
Facts
- He was a wedding singer and sang with Catholic masses and funeral in his hometown.
- He played Fiona in the production of Shrek The Lyceum Musical.
- He has regularly published singing covers on YouTube.
- It is a huge swiftie.
- He was not afraid to call Hollywood hypocrisy.
- He is an open supporter for mental health.
- It has a tattoo inspired by “The Hunger Games”.
- He loves to write and narrate.
