West Side Story (2021): parents' guide
Best for ages 14 and up. Rated PG-13 for some strong violence, strong language, thematic content, suggestive material and brief smoking.
A dazzling musical for teens that keeps the tragedy of the original, so expect real violence and loss. Rival gangs fight with fists, knives and a gun; two young men are stabbed to death and another is shot, and bodies are later seen in a morgue. In one scene the Jets grab Anita and drag her to the floor in an attempted sexual assault that is interrupted. Ethnic slurs come up throughout, along with a few s-words. Two couples are implied to sleep together, and teens smoke and drink. Best for about 14 and up.
What's in it
Violence
StrongAn attempted gang sexual assault on Anita is interrupted after her dress is torn. Two characters are stabbed to death in a rumble, one is shot in the back, a nail is driven through a man's ear, and brawls leave faces bloodied.
Language
StrongEthnic slurs aimed at Puerto Ricans and at Polish, Italian and other white ethnic groups recur. Plugged In counted four s-words, plus 'bastard,' 'goddamn,' 'dick' and 'crap.' One song uses a sound-alike for the f-word.
Sex and nudity
ModerateSex is implied twice: Anita and Bernardo disappear behind a bedroom door, and Tony and Maria are shown in bed with bare shoulders. Lots of kissing, sensual dancing, low-cut costumes and a crude remark about a character's body.
Drinking, drugs and smoking
ModerateTeens and young adults smoke often, characters drink in a seedy bar, and song lyrics joke about parents who are drunks and junkies and mention marijuana.
Scary or intense scenes
ModerateOn-screen deaths, a body identified in a morgue, guns pointed and fought over, and the attempted assault make for intense, grief-filled scenes, though the musical staging softens some of the fighting.
Sensitive topics
- Sexual assault
- Racism
Worth talking about
Both gangs fight over streets that a city project is about to bulldoze. Ask your teen how prejudice and fear of losing ground feed the violence, and whether anyone could have stopped it.
On our lists
Similar picks around 14+
Checked October 13th, 2026 against Common Sense Media, Plugged In, the MPA, movieguide.org, bbfc.co.uk. The age is our judgment, not an official rating, and every family draws its lines differently: read the notes, not just the number. Spotted something we missed? Tell us. How we rate.