Rita Morenosays it was “so bizarre” to watchAriana DeBosebring new life to the character of Anita, 60 years after she won an Oscar for the same role inWest Side Story.
In a PEOPLE exclusive clip of tonight’sNBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, Moreno and DeBose both sat down with Lester Holt ahead of the film’s debut in theaters this Friday.
“She is a beautiful Anita in the movie,” says Moreno in the clip, above. “It was so bizarre because suddenly I was playing another role and she was playing Anita.”
When Holt asked DeBose, 30, if she was in “awe” of Moreno, 89, she said, “Oh, absolutely.”
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“She means a lot to me. She means a lot to the Puerto Rican community, to the Latino community at large, and to the entertainment industry at large,” DeBose continued.
The actress, who has also starred inThe PromandHamilton, said she didn’t try to play Moreno’s version of Anita in the new Steven Spielberg reimagining of the iconic musical.
Ariana DeBose and Rita Moreno.NBC
In November,DeBose revealed that Moreno had offered her a tipfor portraying Anita, saying, “She told me, ‘Niña, I’ll tell you anything you want to know.'”
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Ariana DeBose as Anita inWest Side Story(2022).20th Century Studios / Courtesy Everett
“She empowered me, encouraged me to do my own thing,” DeBose said. “She did tell me one note, but I won’t tell you what it was.”
DeBose did say, “She said, ‘I think there’s more power in a different delivery,'” adding, “I took the note, it was a good note.”
More of Moreno and DeBose’s interview will air tonight onNBC Nightly News with Lester Holtat 6:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. CT.
source: people.com
