Stephen Spielberg Eying a West Side Story Remake

It seems as though film maker Steven Spielberg has his eye on a remake of Robert Wise’s West Side Story according to a Deadline report. FOX, which owns the rights to the film originally released in 1961, has apparently made the story available for Spielberg should he truly be interested in the project.

Spielberg has not directed anything since 2012’s Lincoln which earned two Oscar nods. American Sniper, which was originally his project, has since been taken on by Clint Eastwood after he bowed out. Robopocalypse, another project  the star was set to work on, is now on an indefinite hold.

West Side Story was a Broadway hit when it opened in 1957. It featured a book by Arthur Laurents and music by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim. Loosely based upon William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, the production tells the story of two star-crossed lovers in the form of Tony and Maria.

Not much has taken place beyond Spielberg vocalizing his interest in the project. It is also uncertain the approach Spielberg would take to the classic tale. His only directorial remake was 2005’s War of the Worlds which involved adjusting the story’s setting to present day.

Yet and still, the film making star has other projects in the works. He is serving as an executive producer for Transformers: Age of Extinction, expected in June of this year and the much anticipated 2015’s Jurassic World.