Zendaya Opens Up About Her Buzzy Spider-Man Role, Cultural Appropriation, and Her Future With Disney

Zendaya Opens Up About Her Buzzy Sp

ider-Man Role, Cultural Appropriation, and Her FutureWith Disney

The first thing you need to know about Zendaya is that you’re saying her name wrong. It is not zen-DIE-uh. It’s zen-DAY-uh. Maybe you could be forgiven when you consider the fact that she just turned 20 and you’re probably rusty on your Disney Channel cast members. Then again, she’s a legit red-carpet favorite, an accomplished musician, and oh my God, she just turned 20.

More of the latest on our January 2017 cover star:

Meet Daya by Zendaya, the 20-Year-Old's Inclusive Clothing Line

21 Times Zendaya's Hairstyles Absolutely Slayed Yet Another Reason Zendaya Is So Damn Inspiring
Before we met, I had my theory about Zendaya all fleshed out and ready to prove. First of all, she is

one of the rarest breeds of celebrity—the kind who find their way through the public eye while smack in the middle of the public eye. We didn’t meet Zendaya as a woman; we’re watching her become a woman. Being famous invites scrutiny, and growing up as you’re getting really famous invites the most intense kind of scrutiny. It’s got to be a little jarring for the celebrities being watched. Or so you’d think. But so far, from everything I’ve read about her, Zendaya is handling her fame and newfound adulthood with dignity and grace and a distinct lack of DUIs. Look for a paparazzi picture of Zendaya giving someone the finger—it doesn’t exist. Her lack of a privileged, obnoxious Hollywood demeanor makes you root for her. It makes you want your daughter to listen to her music. It makes you happy that she’s on the cusp of something really big. Figuratively, yes, but literally, too.
Zendaya just moved into a house with three balconies, five bedrooms, five bathrooms, a three-car garage, and one truly massive kitchen. This is where I met her recently on one of those very sunny, very optimistic, very California type of days.
“Sorry, he’s putting up my security camera,” says Zendaya, nodding toward the man installing a device on the side of her house. We settle down on the ledge of her hot tub, having come outside for purely practical reasons (“I don’t have any furniture yet”). But even over the sound of drilling and construction, she isn’t shouting to be heard. On the contrary, her voice is calm and steady.
Zendaya, born Zendaya Coleman, is poised and measured, almost serious. She’s not like any 20-year-old I’ve ever met. “I [dropped my last name because I] just thought it was cool, like Cher or Prince.” The woman, you could say, is driven, ambitious, precocious—and she has very specific plans.
A lot of them. She tells me that she might also want to be a teacher. Or possibly the next Oprah (“Zoprah!”). As we sit overlooking her pool, an inflatable frosted doughnut and a giant white swan drift by. “It’s the ghetto off-brand swan, not the fancy one that was all over Snapchat and Instagram. I don’t have the Rihanna swan—but I’m getting there!” she says, almost apologizing. Zendaya’s wearing her high school sweatshirt, basketball shorts, and socks that read “Team Fuck You” in big black letters.