As tickets go on sale for the film, 20th Century Studios releases a West Side Story clip seeing Rachel Zegler and Ansel Elgort performing "Tonight." Zegler and Elgort lead the film's ensemble cast alongside Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez, Josh Andrés Rivera, Corey Stoll and Brian d'Arcy James. The film will also see the return of Rita Moreno from the original West Side Story adaptation, only this time as Valentina, a reconceived and expanded version of the mentor character Doc.

West Side Story is the second adaptation of Arthur Laurents, Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim's beloved Broadway musical of the same name, which was a loose adaptation of William Shakespeare's iconic tragedy Romeo and Juliet. The plot centers on Tony, a former member of the white gang the Jets, and María, sister to the leader of the rival Puerto Rican gang the Sharks, in the mid-1950s in the Upper West Side of New York City as they fall in love with one another amidst tensions between the groups rising to a dangerous point. After over seven years of working to adapt the project again for the screen, Spielberg's West Side Story is finally gearing up to hit theaters this December.

With just over a week remaining until the film's release, 20th Century Studios has unveiled a new West Side Story clip. The video sees Zegler's María and Elgort's Tony performing the iconic balcony-set song "Tonight." Check out the new clip below:


Those familiar with the original West Side Story film will remember "Tonight" as one of its more iconic moments, namely in how it served as a more contemporary adaptation of the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet. A good portion of the marketing for Spielberg's adaptation of the musical has highlighted the film's recreation of this sequence, with recent posters and clips, including the new one above, offering further looks at the updated version. The new West Side Story clip certainly comes as the best look yet at the sequence, highlighting Spielberg's intimate and stylish direction brought to the emotional musical number.

Additionally, the new West Side Story clip finally sees the marketing embracing the musical movie's iconic songs, with previous trailers largely avoiding actually including the songs but rather very brief glimpses of them. Anticipation for the new film is sure to be high as early reviews are coming out for Spielberg's adaptation, most of which are praising the new take as being nearly as good as the 1961 film. The film has also received renewed attention due to the recent loss of Stephen Sondheim, who shared his approval of the new adaptation in favor of the original. Only time will tell how audiences respond when West Side Story hits theaters on December 10.

West Side Story (2021)
Release Date: Dec 10, 2021