Zendaya Talks ‘Spider-Man’ Casting Controversy. Drops Hints About Her Character.

Zendaya Mary Jane Watson Spider-Man
Image Credit: @MaryJaneWatsun


In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Zendaya responded to the controversy over her role in the upcoming Spider-Man reboot Spider-Man: Homecoming. The singer and actress also dropped a few hints about her character, which is technically still unconfirmed.

Back in March, news broke that Zendaya would be playing a significant role in Spider-Man: Homecoming, which started filming over the summer. At the time, Deadline reported that Zendaya would be playing a character named “Michelle.” Months later, several sites claimed that “Michelle” was actually main character Mary Jane Watson, a role previously played by Kirsten Dunst. The character switch meant that Zendaya’s role would be a love interest for Peter Parker, a coveted role was snagged by actor Tom Holland.

News of Zendaya possibly playing Mary Jane was met with excitement as well as a pretty aggressive and racist backlash. Many comic fans even argued that Zendaya couldn’t play Mary Jane because she isn’t a redhead — ignoring that Dunst’s fiery locks came courtesy of a dye job. Without any official confirmation from the notoriously secretive Marvel Studios camp, Zendaya’s casting is a mystery.

“People are going to react over anything. But nothing [about who she is playing] is fact. It’s like, you guys are just making shit up at this point and then reacting to it,” Zendaya said about the Mary Jane controversy.

“But of course there’s going to be outrage over that because for some reason some people just aren’t ready. I’m like, “I don’t know what America you live in, but from what I see when I walk outside my streets of New York right now, I see lots of diversity and I see the real world and it’s beautiful, and that’s what should be reflected and that’s what is reflected so you’re just going to have to get over it,” she added.

When asked about her character’s possibly romantic involvement with Peter Parker, Zendaya dropped a few hints.

“My character is not romantic,” she said. “My character is like very dry, awkward, intellectual and because she’s so smart, she just feels like she doesn’t need to talk to people, like “My brain is so far ahead of you that you’re just not really on my level.” So she comes off very weird. But to me, she is very cool because she’s deep.”

Spider-Man: Homecoming is set to hit theaters in July 2017.