It didn’t take long for Rachel Zegler to feel the power of “Shazam! Fury of the Gods.”
The superhero sequel is the New Jersey native’s second-ever movie and included moments on set that felt just as fantastical as the ancient magic and computer-animated dragon that appear in the final cut.
Zegler stars as Anthea, a 6,000-year-old goddess whose tyrannical older sisters, played by Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu, are hellbent on retrieving their stolen powers.
“There was a day where we got to sit in our thrones. We had a throne fitting,” Zegler told the Daily News. “Helen had obviously done it before because she has literally played the Queen of England, but Lucy and I had never done it. We were getting throne lessons from Helen Mirren, which is pretty cool.”
Surreal experiences are nothing new for the 21-year-old Zegler. She made her film debut as Maria in Steven Spielberg’s 2021 adaptation of “West Side Story” and won honors from the Golden Globes and National Board of Review. She’s since wrapped production on Disney’s live-action “Snow White,” in which she plays the title princess, and “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,” a prequel film starring her and Tom Blyth.
Zegler’s addition to the DC Extended Universe for “Shazam! Fury of the Gods,” now playing in theaters, was an unexpected one. She loved 2019’s original “Shazam!” — starring Zachary Levi as the hero version of a super-powered foster teen — but, with an extensive musical theater background, hadn’t envisioned herself in the genre.
Acting in a special-effects-heavy movie was unlike anything Zegler had experienced, as was the sisterhood she formed with Mirren and Liu.
“They gave me so much advice just as a young woman in Hollywood,” Zegler said. “‘Shazam 2’ was my second movie that I had ever made and I was really lost in that period of time. I had been sitting on ‘West Side Story’ for a while at that point and it had been postponed due to the pandemic. I was feeling really down on my luck and very confused. … They really carried me to the light in a way that no one else has and taught me about women supporting women on a set.”
Zegler attended Immaculate Conception High School in Bergen County, where she starred in stage musicals including “The Little Mermaid” and “Shrek.” She was 17 when Spielberg cast her in “West Side Story” out of thousands of applicants.
“Broadway was my original goal,” Zegler said. “I was auditioning since the age of 14 to be in Broadway shows, and it just never happened for me. I auditioned for ‘Hamilton’ and the ‘West Side Story’ Broadway revival and so many different stage musicals. … It was never right, and I think it was just getting me ready for the opportunity of a lifetime, which was to play one of the most iconic musical characters in a Steven Spielberg movie.
“Booking that role propelled me forward in the film industry and made people excited for me on camera, and I’ve just kind of been going with that flow,” she said. “But as a New Yorker and somebody who grew up loving the stage, it would be an honor to get to do that someday.”
Zegler, who has Colombian heritage, is the first of several Latino actors making their DC debuts this year. Sasha Calle is set to play Supergirl in June’s “The Flash,” while Xolo Maridueña stars as the title hero in August’s “Blue Beetle.”
The chance to provide big-screen representation excites Zegler, who was the first Latina actress to play Maria in a “West Side Story” film.
“I’m very happy to do that,” Zegler said. “It’s not something I necessarily seek out when I’m auditioning or when I’m offered things. I really just want to tell great stories, and one of my truest beliefs that I hold onto very tight is that true representation comes when we simply get to exist in the world without having to necessarily acknowledge our heritage in the context of a story.
“Getting to play Snow White and being a young Latina in this industry is a huge deal, because it’s not about her heritage. It’s not about what she even looks like. … Getting to play Lucy Gray in ‘Hunger Games’ and getting to exist in that universe, getting to play Anthea, it’s an amazing thing.”
Zegler was impressed by how the “Shazam!” sequel explores real-world topics such as family dynamics within a foster home and the importance of a chosen family.
“In Anthea’s case, I think there are a lot of real-world applications about being a kid who grew up in one environment and taught to think a certain way, and then when you’re exposed to a different environment, you kind of change your opinion on things,” Zegler said.
She relished her character’s complex journey in a story filled with humor and heart.
“It’s so much fun,” Zegler said. “There’s so much action. There’s also a dragon, which is reason enough for anybody to come.”