The original soundtrack recording of West Side Story hit #1 on Billboard's Top Pop Album Chart May 5, 1962 and stayed there for an incredible 54 weeks, setting a record as the album that stayed at the top of the chart the longest - 17 weeks longer than the #2 record-holder, Michael Jackson's Thriller.

One of the most successful record albums of 1985 was an all-new recording of the songs from West Side Story with Leonard Bernstein conducting and featuring a cast of such prominent opera stars as Kiri Te Kanawa and Jose Carreras. The Deutsches Grammophon album was #1 on Billboard's classical chart for 28 weeks. Critical reviews were divided, however, on the new interpretations of the songs.

In the animated film Shrek (2001), Robin Hood and his Merry Men spoof the street gangs dancing in West Side Story.

William Shakespeare's immortal tragedy Romeo and Juliet has been filmed dozens of times in many countries. Among the most noteworthy versions of it have been two in 1916 (one with silent "vamp" Theda Bara as Juliet, another with matinee idol Francis X. Bushman as Romeo), George Cukor's 1936 all-star version featuring Norma Shearer and Leslie Howard), the 1954 version with Laurence Harvey and Susan Shentall, a 1966 ballet version with Margot Fonteyn and Rudolph Nureyev), Franco Zeffirelli's lush 1968 remake with Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting, and Baz Luhrmann's hip 1996 version starring Claire Danes and Leonardo DiCaprio.