How Zendaya Really Feels About Child Stardom: ‘Complicated’

Published: January 7, 2025

How Zendaya Really Feels About Child Stardom: ‘Complicated’

By Movieguide® Contributor

Zendaya is opening up about her “complicated” relationship with child stardom.

The actress rose to fame after scoring a role on Disney’s SHAKE IT UP at just 14 years old, which gave her “complicated relationship with the idea of child acting,” she told The Hollywood Reporter.

“I’ve seen it be detrimental to people,” she explained.

Zendaya continued, “I wouldn’t change it, but there are things that I wish I lived out privately, you know? Because you’re figuring out who you are in front of the world. And you’re like, ‘I’m trying to do this right. I want to make everyone happy, but I don’t really know who I am yet. I have no idea what I’m doing.’”

The actress said that, despite the challenges, she’s still “so grateful” for how her career has “turned out.”

Zendaya has previously spoken about growing up in the spotlight, telling Vogue, “I don’t know how much of a choice I had.”

“I have complicated feelings about kids and fame and being in the public eye, or being a child actor,” she continued. “We’ve seen a lot of cases of it being detrimental…And I think only now, as an adult, am I starting to go, ‘Oh, OK, wait a minute: I’ve only ever done what I’ve known, and this is all I’ve known.’”

Zendaya continued, “I felt like I was thrust into a very adult position: I was becoming the breadwinner of my family very early, and there was a lot of role-reversal happening, and just kind of becoming grown, really.”

The DUNE actress is also dedicated to keeping her private life private. She and SPIDER-MAN co-star Tom Holland have been in a relationship since 2021, and the couple are committed to keeping their lives out of the public eye.

“One of the downsides of our fame is that privacy isn’t really in our control anymore, and a moment that you think is between two people that love each other very much is now a moment that is shared with the entire world,” Holland told GQ.

Zendaya added, “The equal sentiment [we both share] is just that when you really love and care about somebody, some moments or things you wish were your own. I think loving someone is a sacred thing and a special thing and something that you want to deal with and go through and experience and enjoy amongst the two people that love each other.”

The couple’s engagement was announced yesterday.

“Holland proposed at one of Zendaya’s family homes over the holidays,” PEOPLE reported. “A separate source told PEOPLE that ‘everyone close to them knew an engagement was happening’ — just not when. The source said Holland had been keen to propose to Zendaya ‘for a while.'”