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Interview with Zendaya, Gen Z idol and sultry heroine of Challengers
In Challengers, Luca Guadagnino’s provocative tennis drama, Zendaya takes on her most mature role yet, delivering one of her most unsettling performances to date. Released in cinemas in April 2024, the film joined the Prime Video catalogue on September 23rd, 2025. On that occasion, Numéro has met with this passionate, lively actress, who has become an icon of her generation.
Don’t be fooled by her adorable red-carpet pouts and childlike expressions. American actress and producer Zendaya is one of the most powerful women today. According to the media Puck, the star pocketed a sizeable amount of money sum – between eleven and thirteen million dollars – for her latest project, Challengers, released in theatres in April 2024. The feature is now available on Amazon Prime since September 23rd, 2025.
The heroine of Dune: Part Two is now not far off from the highest-paid actresses in the world – Sandra Bullock, Julia Roberts and Jennifer Lawrence each earned between twenty and twenty-five million per film in 2021 according to Variety. This speaks volumes about Zendaya’s new status in Hollywood… The star had already earned $300,000 for just seven minutes of screen time in the first opus of Dune (2021).
Zendaya, star of the series Euphoria and the saga Dune
Followed by 177 million fans on Instagram, Zendaya influences the entire world, starting with Gen Z. Her every move is closely-watched, commented on and mimicked. What’s fascinating about her is that she seems to possess every talent. A graceful dancer, Zendaya also has a gift for singing. In 2023, the star joined producer Labrinth on stage at Coachella to perform two tracks from the Euphoria soundtrack.
Not to mention her model’s stature (5’10”). All the fashion, jewellery and beauty brands are at her feet, from Louis Vuitton and Bulgari to Valentino, Lancôme and Tommy Hilfiger. She is also increasingly asserting her convictions – she is deeply committed to the African-American community – and personal choices, such as being on screen without makeup or wearing dreadlocks on the red carpet. Statements that are both aesthetic and political.
But above all, Zendaya is a formidable actress, able to move audiences in independent projects (Malcolm & Marie, 2021) and shine in high-budget productions. Among the two parts of Denis Villeneuve’s Dune (2021 and 2024), the blockbuster Spider-Man: Far From Home (2021) and the first two seasons of Euphoria (since 2019), in which she is impressive as a teenage drug-addict, Zendaya, 29, has proven to be one of the most talented, versatile and charismatic actresses in Hollywood. Audiences and critics alike acclaim the recipient of two Emmy Awards.
Zendaya, lead character in Luca Guadagnino’s film Challengers
Her new role in Luca Guadagnino‘s new film won’t change that. The director of Call Me By Your Name and Suspiria called on Zendaya to star and co-produce Challengers. She was the one who chose the filmmaker as well as her co-stars, Josh O’Connor (The Crown, La Chimera) and Mike Faist (West Side Story). Released in April 2024, the Italian director’s sports drama quickly established itself as one of the films that marked 2024.
In this steamy drama, Zendaya plays Tashi Duncan, a prodigious athlete hailed as the new hope of tennis and courted by brands, who must rethink her life after a brutal injury. She then decides to devote herself to her husband’s career, Art Donaldson (Mike Faist), by becoming his coach. She put pressure on him and pushes him relentlessly to become a Grand Slam champion.
But a formidable opponent stands in Art’s way… Tashi’s ex-boyfriend and Art’s best friend and rival Patrick Zweig (Josh O’Connor). The latter is a sensitive, offbeat, but dangerous and seductive man. “In the film, tennis is a metaphor for power. But also for the power dynamics between people who depend, perhaps a little too much, on each other,” Zendaya explains. This complex love story, verging on a ménage à trois and a queer romance, reveals a whole new side of the actress. Set against a backdrop of sporting rivalry, the narrative is carried by a hypnotic house music soundtrack.
From Disney to Challengers: A talented actress and producer
Fierce, determined, independent, ambitious, energetic and very sensual, Zendaya is miles away from the roles of lost, shy, sharp-tongued or rebellious teenagers she played in the past. Gone is the Disney heroine of the teen series Shake It Up (2010–2013) and K.C. Undercover (2015–2018).
The actress leaves behind the high school corridors – which she never actually knew since she started her career in Hollywood at the age of 13 – for the sultry tension of tennis courts and exciting student dorms of Challengers. In the film, she plays an adult woman, a confident, daring mother, wife and coach, a role that initially intimidated the star when she first read the script.
“With Mike (Faist) and Josh (O’Connor), we went to a sort of summer camp that helped us develop our love triangle.” – Zendaya
For this bold performance, which traces Tashi’s evolution over several decades, Zendaya did not hesitate to unveil herself, both literally and figuratively. Numéro was at the press conference with the American actress in Paris, where she shared: “Regarding our love triangle (with the characters played by Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor, ed.), what was really special was that we got to participate in what I’d call a kind of summer camp (before filming, ed). We would wake up and train side by side on the tennis court. It felt like we were in the same boat. There was real mutual support. Then, we rehearsed together and shared a common space, which allowed us to talk about these characters, their personal feelings and what we were experiencing personally. We shared our perspectives on all these issues and had time to dig deeper.”
Tennis, Zendaya’s biggest challenge for Challengers
Filming intimate scenes with her co-stars Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor was made easier by the friendly bond they had. Their complicity during the press conference and the film’s premiere in Paris on April 6, 2024, was obvious. “They’re great guys,” Zendaya continued. “It allowed us to feel safe and it made everything easier. When the cameras were rolling, I felt like I was with friends, with people I knew were already on the same journey and who understood me. In the end, you’re able to play and have fun when you know your partner on set supports you in some way. It was wonderful. I felt safe. And that kindness is necessary when you’re playing characters with such messy minds. Between the takes, we would laugh, enjoy ourselves and have a good time, whereas our characters were going through complex things.”
“I had never held a racket in my life!” – Zendaya
“I had never held a racket in my life!” – Zendaya
Her greatest challenge, however, wasn’t the sensual kissing scenes, for which the trio was guided by an intimacy coordinator, but tennis. Even though Zendaya’s father is a former P.E. teacher turned manager and bodyguard, while her mother is a teacher and drama instructor. On the evening of the Challengers premiere, the actress told Numéro: “Learning to play tennis was one of the hardest parts, because we were supposed to embody amazing players, future champions. I had never even held a racket in my life! There was a lot of pressure to look as realistic as possible. We had an excellent team of tennis pros who helped us throughout the process. Thankfully, we had fantastic doubles (laughs). I just hope that the real tennis experts will like the result.” And the actress certainly looks the part on screen. To achieve this striking result, she was coached both by Brad Gilbert, trainer of American tennis player Coco Gauff, and tennis player Eric Taino.
“I recognize myself in my character’s journey, because I learned a lot about myself through my work too.” – Zendaya
If Zendaya impresses as a seductive and calculating high-level athlete, it is also because she allows cracks from her girl boss mask to show through. The actress brought real humanity to her character, who, on paper, could easily have seemed tough and unshakable. Perhaps because part of her identify to Tashi. “Tashi’s first passion is tennis,” Zendaya commented in a press release. “It’s what has made her stronger and built her character. I recognize myself in her journey, because I learned a lot about myself through my work too. When she gets injured and can no longer practice the discipline that defines her identity, she has to find a way to reinvent herself. She does everything to control it all, to master her emotions, to get what she wants and needs, without knowing where it will lead her in my opinion. I think many women will recognize themselves in Tashi.”
Zendaya, who has long supported her family by working relentlessly and excelling at everything, has also defined herself largely through her work. Constantly under the spotlight, alongside her boyfriend Tom Holland, another Gen Z idol, and always on the move, she comes across as a hard-working force of nature. A woman, who might have struggled to care for her mental health or private life sometimes. As a matter of fact, she admits being an introvert – Zendaya was a very shy child off-camera – and playing a role on red carpets using method dressing.
A fashion icon endorsed by Jonathan Anderson
Challengers also gave Zendaya the chance to assert her status as a fashion icon, both on screen and on the premiere’s red carpets. Clothes play a key role in this film, and so do her hairdo and makeup. As the new hope of tennis, she wears long, braided hair, along with miniskirts and short dresses. Later, as a talented coach, she sports a chic bob, Chanel espadrilles and must-have preppy pieces created by the Irish designer Jonathan Anderson. The founder of the label JW Anderson and Loewe’s former creative director before taking over at Dior, is the costume designer of the film.
“I felt lucky to wear those clothes. It was great of Luca (Guadagnino) to involve Jonathan (Anderson) in all this. I think he’s an iconic designer and he created an art we could all enjoy outside the runway. It was exciting to see him transform into a costume designer. Even though the worlds of cinema and fashion have similarities, I think they are very different,” Zendaya declared at a press conference.
“Jonathan Anderson’s costumes aren’t just clothes. Clothes are never just clothes.” – Zendaya
The star added: “It was fun to watch, understand, explore and discover who these characters were. Their choices are reflected in the clothes they wear. The clothes underline their actions and decisions. You can also see the characters grow through their looks. When they’re younger, they wear outfits that match the fashion trends of the early 2000s, even making a few fashion mistakes in their youth.”
Zendaya went on: “There’s a lot of sharing clothes between the characters. T-shirts travel from one person to another. Eventually one character ends up with another one while wearing someone else’s clothes. Everything is interconnected. It’s well-thought. They’re not just clothes. Clothes are never just clothes.” And when you look at her red carpet appearances, you realize they are indeed more than mere fabrics. They are adornments or armours that translate her power. Whether she sports a robot look (Mugler) or tennis-ball-studded pumps, Zendaya instantly makes a statement and leaves a mark on pop culture. The mark of a future all-time great star…
Challengers (2024) by Luca Guadagnino, available now on Prime Video.
