Rachel Anne Zegler is an American actress and singer born on May 3, 2001, in Hackensack, New Jersey. She rose to fame pl
Zegler has since become a leading name in film and musical theater on both Broadway and the West End.
Who is Rachel Zegler?
Rachel Zegler is an actress and singer known for blending major film roles with live musical theater. She was chosen from more than 30,000 applicants to play María in West Side Story, marking her film debut.
That performance earned her the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. At age 20, she became the youngest winner in that category.
Zegler has since starred in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, Disney’s live-action Snow White, and the West End revival of Evita. She made her Broadway debut in 2024 and her West End debut in 2025.
Early Life of Rachel Zegler
Rachel Zegler was born in Hackensack, New Jersey, to Gina and Craig Zegler. She grew up in Clifton, New Jersey, alongside an older sister, Jacqueline.
Her mother was born in the United States to Colombian immigrants and was partially raised in Barranquilla, Colombia. Her father is of distant Polish descent.
Zegler became interested in theater after seeing Beauty and the Beast on Broadway at age four. She landed her first acting role at age 12, playing Shprintze in a production of Fiddler on the Roof.
She attended Immaculate Conception High School in Lodi, New Jersey, where she starred in several school musicals. Zegler graduated as salutatorian on June 2, 2019.
Rachel Zegler Age
Rachel Zegler is 25 years old as of 2026, born on May 3, 2001. Her zodiac sign is Taurus.
She was only 16 when she first auditioned for West Side Story in 2018. That audition eventually launched her into major film and stage roles before she turned 21.
Rachel Zegler Ethnicity and Nationality
Rachel Zegler is American, born and raised in New Jersey. She has Colombian heritage through her mother and distant Polish heritage through her father.
She has spoken publicly about growing up in a bilingual household, fluent in both English and Spanish. Zegler has also discussed facing discrimination online due to her mixed ethnicity, describing herself as a white Latina navigating both privilege and prejudice.
Rachel Zegler Height and Weight
Rachel Zegler stands at approximately 5 feet 4 inches, or 163 centimeters. Her exact weight is not publicly confirmed.
She has performed physically demanding stage roles, including a run as Eva Perón in Evita under director Jamie Lloyd’s stripped-down staging. That production required both vocal and physical stamina across an eight-show week.
Rachel Zegler Musical Style and Influences
Zegler works across film, stage, and recorded music, with a voice trained through years of musical theater roles before her film career began. She has named Barbra Streisand as one of her primary influences.
In 2021, Streisand sent Zegler a copy of her album Release Me 2 along with a personal note. That gesture came shortly after Zegler’s breakout in West Side Story.
Her recorded output includes songs tied to her film and stage roles, including “The Hanging Tree” from The Hunger Games and “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” from Evita.
Rachel Zegler Education
Zegler attended Immaculate Conception High School in Lodi, New Jersey, where she performed in musicals including Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, 42nd Street, and Shrek the Musical. She received Metropolitan High School Theater Award nominations for all four performances.
She graduated as salutatorian in June 2019. Zegler moved directly into professional acting rather than pursuing a theater degree, as her casting in West Side Story came before her high school graduation.
Rachel Zegler Career
Early Career
Zegler ran an active YouTube channel from July 2015 to August 2023, posting song covers and lifestyle videos. Her cover of “Shallow” from A Star Is Born drew millions of views online.
In January 2018, Steven Spielberg posted an open casting call for a new film adaptation of West Side Story. Zegler, then 16, responded with videos of herself singing “Tonight” and “I Feel Pretty,” having previously played María in a 2017 production at the Bergen Performing Arts Center.
She was selected from more than 30,000 applicants for the role. That casting marked her professional film debut.
Breakthrough Role
West Side Story was released in December 2021 and earned strong reviews from critics. Zegler’s performance won her the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, making her the first actress of Colombian descent to win in that category.
She was initially left off the guest list for the 2022 Academy Awards despite the film earning seven nominations, including Best Picture. After media attention over the perceived snub, the Academy invited her to serve as a presenter instead.
In 2023, Zegler starred as Anthea in Shazam! Fury of the Gods and as Lucy Gray Baird in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. The Hunger Games prequel grossed $349 million worldwide and earned Zegler praise from critics for her performance.
Recent Work
Zegler made her Broadway debut playing Juliet in a musical adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, running from September 2024 to February 2025. She also voiced the lead role in the animated Netflix film Spellbound, released in 2024.
In 2025, she starred as the title character in Disney’s live-action Snow White. The film drew mixed reviews and grossed roughly $206 million worldwide against a production budget of $240 to $270 million, though it became the most-watched film on Disney+ after release.
That same year, Zegler made her West End debut as Eva Perón in a revival of Evita at the London Palladium, directed by Jamie Lloyd. She won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical for the role, along with the WhatsOnStage Award for Best Performer in a Musical.
In March 2026, Zegler played Cathy Hiatt opposite Ben Platt in a concert run of The Last Five Years at the London Palladium, later reprising the role at the Hollywood Bowl and Radio City Music Hall. She is set to star alongside Marisa Tomei in the comedy drama She Gets It from Me and as Velma in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s film Octet.
Rachel Zegler Discography
Zegler’s recorded work includes the singles “Let Me Try,” “The Hanging Tree,” “The Ballad of Lucy Gray Baird,” “Man of the House,” “Waiting on a Wish,” “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina,” and “Rainbow High.” Her songs have charted on the New Zealand Hot Singles chart and the UK Sales chart.
She also recorded a live album from her 2026 concert run of The Last Five Years alongside Ben Platt. Zegler released “Balcony Scene (Tonight)” as a duet with her West Side Story co-star Ansel Elgort.
Rachel Zegler Awards and Recognition
Zegler won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for West Side Story in 2022. She also won the National Board of Review award for Best Actress that year.
In 2024, she won the People’s Choice Award for Action Movie Star of the Year for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. She later won an iHeartRadio Music Award for Favorite Broadway Debut for Romeo + Juliet.
For her performance in Evita, Zegler won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical, the WhatsOnStage Award for Best Performer in a Musical, and the Standard Theatre Award for Best Musical Performance. She was included in the Forbes 30 Under 30 class of 2022.
Rachel Zegler Tours and Concerts
Zegler headlined two concerts at the London Palladium in October 2025, joined by special guests Ramin Karimloo and Andrew Lloyd Webber. Both shows sold out quickly, leading to an added matinee performance.
In March 2026, she returned to the London Palladium for a one-week concert run of The Last Five Years opposite Ben Platt. The pair later brought the production to the Hollywood Bowl and Radio City Music Hall in April 2026.
Rachel Zegler Boyfriend
Rachel Zegler dated actor Josh Andrés Rivera from February 2021 until the two split by the end of 2024. The couple met on the set of West Side Story and later co-starred together in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes.
By 2025, Zegler began a relationship with Nathan Louis-Fernand, a dancer she met while performing in Evita in London. She confirmed the relationship on Instagram that month, sharing photos of the two together.
Rachel Zegler Net Worth
Rachel Zegler’s estimated net worth is $4 million as of 2026. Her income comes from major film roles, stage salaries on Broadway and the West End, voice acting, and music royalties.
She has built that wealth rapidly since her 2021 film debut. Her stage work in Evita and The Last Five Years has added further income alongside her film career.
Rachel Zegler Social Media
Rachel Zegler is active on Instagram under the handle @rachelzegler, where she posts about her film and stage work. Her account has built a following in the millions.
She also posts on X under the handle @rachelzegler, an account she has used since joining the platform in May 2015. Zegler does not maintain an active TikTok account, though she previously ran a YouTube channel from 2015 to 2023.
The Bottom Line
Rachel Zegler won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy in 2022 for West Side Story, becoming the youngest winner in that category at age 20. She went on to win the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her 2025 West End debut as Eva Perón in Evita.
She grew up in Clifton, New Jersey, in a bilingual household shaped by her mother’s Colombian heritage and her father’s Polish descent. Zegler has been outspoken about colorism in Hollywood and has faced public controversy over her political statements during the release of Snow White.
She is currently set to star in the films She Gets It from Me and Octet, the latter directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Zegler continues to split her career between major film roles and live musical theater on both sides of the Atlantic.
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