Rachel Zegler Seen as Snow White for the First Time During Filming for Live-Action Remake (original) (raw)

"Never in a million years did I imagine that this would be a possibility for me," Rachel Zegler previously said about playing the Disney princess

Published on May 22, 2022 04:04PM EDT

Photo: Spartacus / SplashNews.com

Rachel Zegler is the new Snow White!

In behind-the-scenes pictures of the West Side Story star on-set this week, fans got a first look at Zegler as the iconic Disney princess.

In the photos, the Golden Globe winner, 21, is seen wearing a gown with a blue bodice and long puff sleeves attached to a canary yellow tulle skirt. Other than the sleeves being a longer version of the animation's original costume, the look does closely resemble the original 1937 character.

As for accessories, Zegler has many clips in her hair to hold the short bob together while walking around in a pair of UGG boots.

In a chat with Andrew Garfield for Variety's Actors on Actors series earlier this year, she recalled that her live-action casting announcement "was a huge thing that was trending on Twitter for days, because all of the people were angry."

"Ah, those people. The people that we need to educate. The people that we need to love into awareness," explained Garfield, 38.

"We need to love them in the right direction," replied Zegler, in reference to those who criticized her casting over her race. She added, "At the end of the day, I have a job to do that I'm really excited to do. I get to be a Latina princess."

"Never in a million years did I imagine that this would be a possibility for me," the actress noted. "You don't normally see Snow Whites that are of Latin descent. Even though Snow White is really a big deal in Spanish-speaking countries."

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories.

"Blanca Nieves is a huge icon whether you're talking about the Disney cartoon or just different iterations and the Grimm fairytale and all the stories that come with it," Zegler continued. "But you don't particularly see people who look like me or are me playing roles like that."

Rich Fury/Getty

The June 2021 announcement of her Snow White casting came months before audiences saw Zegler's debut performance in Steven Spielberg's West Side Story, which opened in December. For her role as Maria, she nabbed the Golden Globe for best actress in a motion picture – musical or comedy.

The Snow White remake will be directed by Marc Webb (The Amazing Spider-Man) and will also star Gal Gadot as the Evil Queen.

"Rachel's extraordinary vocal abilities are just the beginning of her gifts. Her strength, intelligence and optimism will become an integral part of rediscovering the joy in this classic Disney fairytale," Webb, 47, said in a June statement to PEOPLE.