Rachel Zegler is spilling the details about her first day on the set of West Side Story with director Steven Spielberg!

The 22-year-old actress starred as Maria in Steven‘s 2021 film adaptation of the popular 1961 musical.

Keep reading to find out more…

Rachel took to X, formerly known as Twitter, on Friday (November 24) to share her experience working on West Side Story with the legendary filmmaker.

In a quote reply to a four-second GIF of her in the movie, Rachel wrote: “that time it was my first day on set and steven spielberg said ‘whatever you do don’t blink.’”

In a follow-up tweet she added: “imagine janusz kaminski putting a whole light in your face and you have to A) not blink, B) not tear up, and C) not die because it’s your first day on your first movie ever.”

Rachel then joked, “this is why i won the golden globe. my eyeballs of steel.”

For her lead role in West Side Story, Rachel won the 2022 Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.

Following her breakout performance, Rachel has appeared in two major film releases in 2023: Shazam! Fury of the Gods and The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

She is set to star in Disney’s live-action Snow White movie, scheduled to hit theaters in 2025.

If you missed it, we assembled the full timeline of Rachel Zegler and Josh Andrés Rivera‘s relationship!