2026: the year of Zendaya

With the return of Euphoria and starring roles in four massive movies, the actress is about to prove that she’s Hollywood's most bankable star

Apr 07, 2026

“I just hope people don’t get sick of me,” Zendaya said with a giggle as she answered questions ahead of the release of her provocative new film, The Drama.

The 29-year-old actress was referring to her booked and busy 2026 schedule, which sees her drop four major movies, and return to the small screen this Sunday in HBO’s smash-hit teen drama Euphoria.

By any standard it’s an ambitious undertaking. In politics it would be called flooding the zone. But in Hollywood Zendaya’s heavy slate signifies what a sure bet she’s become, particularly with Gen Z audiences, who now make up the largest share of cinema-goers in America.

That faith has already paid off for A24, the indie producer behind The Drama. The film, which sees Zendaya star opposite Robert Pattinson, as a bride-to-be whose wedding week is rocked by a disturbing revelation, is now the third biggest opening for the production company. With $14.4/£10.8 million in ticket sales, only Marty Supreme and Civil War have performed better.

And box office takings look set to grow as discourse builds around the twist at the centre of The Drama’s plot. I’ll not ruin it for anyone, but it’s helped the film become the most talked about movie of the year so far.

Zendaya proved she could carry a movie in 2024 after Challengers became a surprise hit. That grossed almost $100/£75 million worldwide, far in excess of its $55/£41 million budget, and well beyond expectations for an R-rated film about a toxic love triangle on the pro tennis circuit.

It almost certainly set her up for a dominant 2026. After The Drama and Euphoria, Zendaya will return to the big screen in Chrisopher Nolan’s star-packed $250/£188 million blockbuster, The Odyssey. His adaptation of Homer’s ancient Greek epic is out in July, the same month that she’ll reprise her role as MJ, in a new Spider-Man film alongside her romantic partner Tom Holland. The last Spider-Man movie involving the couple was the highest grossing movie of 2021.

She’ll end the year with the release of Dune: Part Three. The previous two movies have made more than $1 billion (£750 million) thanks to Zendaya, and its leading man, Timothée Chalamet.

He is similarly blessed with the ability to get teens and twenty-somethings into theaters, but that’s where comparisons between the two stars end.

Rather than blitz social media with wacky stunts and made-to-go-viral videos, Zendaya has adopted an old-school Hollywood approach to fame. We know so little about her personal life, it’s unclear how to accurately describe her and Holland’s relationship.

The pair first worked together in 2016 when they were both cast in Spider-Man: Homecoming. And after years of rumours that they were dating the couple finally went public in 2021, after they were pictured kissing in a car.

Zendaya and Holland did confirm their engagement at the start of last year, but they’ve refused to be drawn on whether they’ve tied the knot. That was further complicated when her long time stylist, Law Roach, claimed last month that they’d already celebrated their big day. “You missed it,” he quipped to Access Hollywood. Zendaya’s mom then reposted the clip with a laughing emoji.

While Zendaya may be tight-lipped about her marital status, and shares little beyond film promo with her 176 million Instagram followers, she keeps herself at the top of social feeds and in the press, by being a fashion powerhouse.

A well known advocate of method dressing, Zendaya regularly matches her clothes to her latest film role, crafting looks with Roach, who she’s worked with for over 15 years.

For Challengers she wore tennis balls on her sky-high stilettos.

The last Dune premiere saw her wow in a Mugler bionic suit.

Most recently she showcased a series of bridal looks to promote The Drama prompting a flurry of features and countless social media posts about her own did-they-or-didn’t-they nuptials.

Zendaya has proven time and again that she knows how to create a news cycle from her wardrobe, and that’s been crucial in growing her profile on the platforms where her fans spend much of their time.

Her choice of roles has also been pivotal. Zendaya has never played a vacuous sweetheart, and is instead drawn towards subversive and flawed characters. She already has two Emmys to her name for her mesmerising portrayal of troubled drug addict, Rue, in Euphoria.

In the Spider-Man franchise she plays a sarcastic, smart introvert, and Challengers saw her take on the role of a manipulative mastermind, who convinces the two men who are pursuing her to have their own sexual encounter.

Many of Zendaya’s OG fans grew up alongside her after she started her career as a child star on the Disney Channel. Her big break came when she was just 14 and cast as a co-lead in Shake It Up. Years earlier she’d convinced her school teacher parents - Claire Stoermer and Kazembe Ajamu Coleman - to move from Oakland, California, to Los Angeles so she could pursue her Hollywood dreams.

From humble beginnings Zendaya has managed to achieve what few can only dream of – she’s becoming a bone fide film star before her 30th birthday. I don’t think she should lose any sleep about us ever growing tired of that.

A version of this story originally appeared in The Times