New 'West Side Story' Images Take You To The Streets With Steven Spielberg's Musical Remake

One day there will come a time when we can all gather outside again in groups. And if you need help picturing what that might look like, look no further than these new West Side Story images. The pics have the cast out and about, dancing and leaping and clearly having a good time in the streets. And sure, these streets are clearly studio backlot streets, but they still count, damn it!

Steven Spielberg has been talking about making a musical for almost his entire career, and now he's finally gone and done it. It's a remake of West Side Story, and it looks to be a big throwback to Hollywood musicals of old, complete with big dance numbers, bright costuming, and well-lit studio backlot streets. People En Español has debuted three new images from Spielberg's latest, and they're a sight for sore eyes. Two of the pics are full of people out and about, dancing, smiling, having a great time – and it's telling that my immediate thought was a pang of anxiety. "These fictional characters should be social distancing!" I thought.

But of course, that's silly. West Side Story isn't reality. It's old school Hollywood moviemaking from one of our best living directors. And hopefully it'll hold onto its current December release date. Dig the pics below.

First, here's Rita Moreno as Valentina, a new take on the character of Doc from the play/original movie. Moreno, of course, appeared in the 1961 film adaptation as Anita, a role that won her the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Here's a big dance number featuring Ariana DeBose as the new Anita. This is my favorite pic of the bunch – the colors are really popping here, and you can sense the energy from this moment even via a still image.

Finally, here are some of the Sharks, defying gravity and looking very stylish. I know there was a weird backlash against the first West Side Story image for being rather blah – it was admittedly very beige-colored – but every image released since then, including these, has been vibrant. They really pop, and I'm excited to see what Spielberg has cooked up here

West Side Story "explores young love and tensions between rival gangs the Jets and the Sharks on the streets of 1957 New York. The cast also includes Ansel Elgort (Tony); Rachel Zegler (Maria); Ana Isabelle (Rosalia); Corey Stoll (Lieutenant Schrank); Brian d'Arcy James (Officer Krupke); Curtiss Cook (Abe) and Academy Award-winner Rita Moreno, who plays Valentina and also serves as one of the film's Executive Producers."

The musical is currently scheduled for a December 18, 2020 release.