Rachel Zegler facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rachel Zegler
Zegler in 2023
Born	Rachel Anne Zegler (2001-05-03) May 3, 2001 (age 24) Hackensack, New Jersey, U.S.
Occupation	Actress singer
Years active	2016–present
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Rachel Anne Zegler (born May 3, 2001) is an American actress and singer. She became well-known for playing María in Steven Spielberg's movie West Side Story (2021). For this role, she won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.

Since then, she has acted in several other films. She played Anthea in the superhero movie Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023). She also starred as Lucy Gray Baird in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023). In 2025, she will be the main character in the musical fantasy film Snow White. Rachel Zegler also performs on stage. She made her Broadway debut as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet (2024). She also performed in London's West End as Eva Perón in the musical Evita (2025).

Early Life and Education

Rachel Anne Zegler was born in Hackensack, New Jersey, on May 3, 2001. Her parents are Gina and Craig Zegler. She has an older sister. Her mother's family is from Colombia. Her grandmother moved to the United States from Barranquilla in the 1960s. Her father's family is from Poland.

Rachel grew up in Clifton, New Jersey. She has shared that she faced unfair treatment online because of her mixed background. When she was four, she saw her first Broadway show, Beauty and the Beast. This made her love theater. Her first acting role was at age 12. She played Shprintze in a play called Fiddler on the Roof. After this, she decided to become an actress and started taking singing and acting lessons.

Rachel went to Immaculate Conception High School. This was an all-girls private Catholic school. There, she starred in many school musicals. She played Belle in Beauty and the Beast (2016). She was Ariel in The Little Mermaid (2017). She also played Dorothy Brock in 42nd Street (2018). Her last role there was Princess Fiona in Shrek the Musical (2019). For these roles, she was nominated for awards. She also played Serena in Legally Blonde and Cosette in Les Misérables. Rachel graduated on June 2, 2019. She was the second-highest-ranking student in her class. She also had a YouTube channel where she shared videos from 2015 to 2023.

Rachel Zegler's Acting Career

Becoming a Star with West Side Story

Zegler in 2019

In January 2018, director Steven Spielberg looked for new actors for his movie West Side Story. He posted an open casting call online. Rachel, who was 16 at the time, sent videos of herself singing. She sang "Tonight" and "I Feel Pretty". She had already played Maria in a local theater show in 2017. Rachel was chosen for the role from over 30,000 people. This was her very first movie role. The film came out in December 2021. Critics and audiences really liked her performance.

For her acting, Rachel was nominated for a Critics' Choice Movie Award. She won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. She was the first actress of Colombian background to win this award. At 20 years old, she was also the youngest person to win in that category.

Big Movies and Stage Debuts

Rachel Zegler played Anthea in the superhero movie Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023). The movie got mixed reviews. She then starred as Lucy Gray Baird in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023). This film is a prequel to The Hunger Games series. It also received mixed to positive reviews. Many critics praised Rachel's performance. One critic said she was "absolutely captivating."

Zegler as Eva Perón live at the London Palladium in 2025

In 2023, Rachel left the movie Paddington in Peru. She said it was because of a strike by actors. She also played Laura in the film Y2K. This movie was shown at a festival in 2024 and released in December of that year.

Rachel made her Broadway debut as Juliet in a musical version of Romeo and Juliet. This show ran from September 2024 to February 2025. She also lent her voice to the main character, Princess Ellian, in the animated musical film Spellbound, which premiered on Netflix. She then played the main character in Snow White (2025). This is a live-action movie based on the 1937 Disney animated film. Rachel also made her West End debut in London. She played Eva Perón in a new show of Evita in the summer of 2025. She received great praise for her performance. She is also set to star in a comedy-drama called She Gets It from Me.

Personal Life

In February 2021, Rachel Zegler and actor Josh Andrés Rivera shared that they were dating. They met while working on West Side Story. They also starred together in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. They later broke up by the end of 2024.

Rachel looks up to Barbra Streisand as a big influence. In 2021, Streisand sent Rachel a special gift. It included an album and a book, with a note saying, "For R., from B." Rachel is also open about her mental health. She has shared that she experiences anxiety and seeks support for it.

Filmography

Movies

Key

Denotes films that have not yet been released

Theater Performances

Podcast Roles

Music Discography

Singles

Other Charted Songs

Other Music Appearances

Awards and Nominations

See also

In Spanish: Rachel Zegler para niños