Family is everything forAriana DeBose.
In a new interview for PEOPLE’s Oscars portfolio, the first-time nominee reveals that her mother got to visit her on the set ofWest Side Story, and meet the film’s legendary director.
“My mother got to visit, and she met Señor[Steven] Spielberg,” says DeBose, 31. “And watching Gina become speechless was amazing. Love you, Mom.”
The on-set visit came the same day DeBose filmed the gym dance near the beginning of the movie — a scene she says she “really enjoyed” doing because “it was six days of sweaty bliss.”
“And it was one of the few moments that the Sharks and the Jets and all of our extras really got to be in the same space,” she explains. “And it was really complicated, but I had a great time.”
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Ariana DeBose.Ben Watts
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“Every time I book a bigger project or something that is shocking even to me, my family’s very much like, ‘Oh wow, you’re … yes, that’s — congratulations! You’re gonna do that!’ " she tells PEOPLE. “Which makes me giggle, ‘cause I’m like, ‘Yeah, I guess I am.’ "
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When DeBose told her mom she was going to hostSaturday Night Live, Gina asked her daughter whether she was “ready” for the gig.
“I was like, ‘No, absolutely not, but we’re gonna do it anyways,’ " the actress says, laughing.
Ariana DeBose as Anita inWest Side Story(2022).20th Century Studios / Courtesy Everett
DeBose tells PEOPLE she’s excited to be “at a moment in [her] career where people listen when I have something to say.”
“And that doesn’t come for everyone, and I’m very aware of that,” she adds. “So I’m focused on how I can be a conducive part of whatever conversation — there are many conversations that need to happen in our industry and in the world.”
“I’m a service-based person too, and there are many things to work on, so just trying to find ways to be of service,” DeBose says.
source: people.com
