Since the 2010s, Zendaya has been an all-time favorite of Gen Z. From her Disney Channel days, she has always had a following of those who adore her.
Not only does Gen-Z love her, but the general Hollywood media does too. She’s not one to be in the press for anything negative. It’s hard to scroll through social media and news feeds and not see someone praising her. She’s simply chasing her bag and looking absolutely beautiful while doing it.
There’s clearly a reason why she was listed on Time 100’s most influential people list.
Beginnings
Before fame, Zendaya grew up in Oakland, California. As a child, she was into performing, acting in plays and taking up hip-hop. This leads her to audition for the Disney Channel show, Shake It Up. Alongside co-star Bella Thorne, Zendaya portrays Rocky Blue. The show focuses on two teenage girls who follow their dreams of becoming dancers on a local TV show. Shake It Up became a hit show, launching Zendaya’s career.
From this point, Zendaya starred in other lead roles for Disney like Frenemies, Zapped, and K.C. Undercover. With these successes, Zendaya also began a music career. For the Shake It Up soundtrack, she released a solo song, “Something to Dance For,” as well as “Watch Me” with Thorne. Independently, she created an album that featured her hit song “Replay.” These projects lead Zendaya to become a successful, treasured member of the Disney network. Through her time with the network and her personal musical aspirations, Zendaya has gathered a following that has stuck with her today.
In a Variety’s Actors on Actors video, Zendaya reflects on her career as a Disney kid. She expresses gratitude stating, “That’s where I started, and I learned so much from that experience…It’s part of my heritage to a degree.”
Transition into Adulthood
After her time on Disney, Zendaya’s career only expands, becoming more mainstream. In 2017, she joins the Marvel Universe. Spider-Man: Homecoming features Zendaya as MJ, the love interest to Peter Parker, played by Tom Holland. She continues to star in other Spider-Man projects such as Spider-Man: Far from Home and Spider-Man: No Way Home. As most people know, this collaboration with Holland sparked a relationship between the pair. After years of fan and tabloid speculation, the pair confirmed their relationship publicly through an Instagram post on Holland’s account in 2021. As of 2024, they are still going strong!
Tapping into her musical talents, Zendaya appears in the movie musical The Greatest Showman. She plays Anne Wheeler, the love interest to a fellow ex-Disney kid, Zac Efron. The film went on to receive praise and receive nominations. The Hollywood Reporter gushes over Zendaya’s performance, calling her the strongest of all the secondary characters.
In 2019, Zendaya’s career takes a complete 180 turn. She takes on a more adult role as Rue, a teenage drug addict, in the HBO series, Euphoria. The show features issues surrounding drug use, sex, and violence which is completely different from anything Disney produces. While working on the show, Zendaya contributed to its soundtrack. She sings “All For Us” in collaboration with artist Labrinth. She also co-writes two songs featured on the soundtrack. Euphoria has become increasingly popular, receiving praise from fans and critics. For her role as Rue, Zendaya is awarded an Emmy in 2020 and 2022 for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. She goes down as the youngest to receive this award, making Emmy history.
Fashion
If there’s one thing to know about Zendaya, it’s that she’s a fashion icon. As the youngest person to win the CFDA’s Fashion Icon Award, Zendaya goes above and beyond when it comes to her style at red-carpet events. In fact, most press surrounding Zendaya revolves around her fashion. Vogue France has dubbed her as a “style icon” and a “fashion chameleon.”
Her stylist is none other than Law Roach, who she began working with in 2011. With the help of Law Roach, Zendaya has been able to stun with her bold outfit choices. At the premiere of Dune: Part Two, she walked the carpet in a chrome suit that replicates body armor. The outfit from Mugler Couture’s 1995 collection created a lot of buzz online, praising her look. Vogue declared Zendaya as being in “a fashion galaxy of her own.”
Zendaya is also one to turn heads at the annual Met Gala. Having attended six Met Galas, Zendaya’s outfits are always a talking point for the media. Most recently, she served as a co-chair for the 2024 Met Gala with the theme being “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion.” When Zendaya showed up, the media was speechless. She wore not only one but two outfits on the carpet. The first outfit consisted of a blue and green color palette with feathers and metallic grapes. As for her second look of the event, she stepped out in a 1996 vintage fashion piece by John Galliano for Givenchy. The gown is neutrally colored, but the headpiece replicates a bouquet.
Fans were stunned with the fact that she wore two outfits. An X user commented, “this is so funny bc she saw the girls weren’t serving and got back in line.”
Current Ventures
The recent buzz surrounding Zendaya revolves around her newest movie, Challengers. She stars as Tashi Duncan, a tennis player whose potential career comes to a close after a knee injury. Following this tragedy, she coaches her husband, Art Donaldson (Mike Faist), who is on a losing streak. However, the past creeps around the corner when her husband finds himself in a match against his ex-best friend who is also Tashi’s ex-boyfriend, Patrick Zweig (Josh O’Connor). The movie has been received as a hit, raking in around $70 million globally. It has also received an 89% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
As for Zendaya’s individual performance, top critics and publications are praising her. Seattle Refined describes this as “her best performance yet.” Some are predicting her to receive an Academy Award nomination.
The praise and box office results are not surprising when Zendaya is front and center. She’s hard not to admire, on and off-screen. Whether it be through her acting or her fashion, Zendaya is an all-time favorite. With everything she does, there is an expectation that she will not disappoint, and she never does.
