ZENDAYA
b. 1996
Oakland, California
Actress, model, producer
We all know her as Rue, of HBO's Euphoria, where she became the youngest person to win Best Lead Actress at the 2020 Emmys. But Zendaya was on the scene and your screens well before that.
Hailing from Oakland, California, Zendaya attended the Oakland School for the Arts and joined theater companies like the American Conservatory Theater, TheatreWorks, and California Shakespeare Theatre.
She also worked as a model and backup dancer before her big break in 2010 by joining the Disney sitcom Shake It Up cast. In 2017 Zendaya made her feature-film debut as Michelle in Spider-Man: Homecoming.
Since then, she's been in films like The Greatest Showman, Malcolm & Marie, and Dune.
-
CFDA Fashion Icon Award (2021)
Emmy, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (2020)
-
“She’s from the Bay Area, I grew up watching her on the Disney channel to being cast in more serious roles, including Euphoria. It’s inspiring to see a Black girl my age come from the same place as me and be successful in multiple acting roles.”
-Marley M.
-
RELATED
-
Naomi Osaka
-
Simone Biles
-
Issa Rae