Actress Zendaya apparently wasn’t aware at the time that she was auditioning for a role in Spider-Man: Homecoming.
Movie gigs don’t come much bigger than superhero films these days, and superheroes don’t come much bigger than Spider-Man, especially now that the character is being incorporated into the Marvel Cinematic Universe with this latest reboot of the tale.
So a young actress would probably be pretty excited about getting the opportunity to land one of the film’s key roles. Unfortunately for Zendaya, she wasn’t aware what her audition was actually for.
Zendaya told the story to Jimmy Fallon in a recent interview (via comicbook.com), describing her surprise.
“I knew I was auditioning for ‘Girl In Movie’, it was great getting into character [laughs],” Zendaya said. “In fact, I didn’t actually even know what kind of character [it was], because my character is very interesting. She is kind of a loner; she is super-intellectual, very dug-dry humor with one-liners, pops in and pops out. I didn’t even know what character I was going to play until I got there and sign the Non-Disclosure and then read the script.”
The actress, who will be playing a character named Michelle in the movie, also talked about how the production for Homecoming didn’t feel like a superhero film to her.
“So everything that I shot, when we were shooting just felt like I was shooting this awkward teen coming-of-age comedy kind of thing and then you realize, when the trailers were starting to come out, that ‘Wow, this is a Spider-Man movie! This is action, it’s going down!’” Zendaya said.
Fans will be able to see Zendaya in Spiderman: Homecoming, apparently not involved in the film’s action, early next month.
SEE ALSO: The hero we deserve: Kevin Feige explains how he brought Spider-Man to the Marvel Cinematic Universe
A young Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Tom Holland), who made his sensational debut in Captain America: Civil War, begins to navigate his newfound identity as the web-slinging super hero in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Thrilled by his experience with the Avengers, Peter returns home, where he lives with his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei), under the watchful eye of his new mentor Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.). Peter tries to fall back into his normal daily routine – distracted by thoughts of proving himself to be more than just your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man – but when the Vulture (Michael Keaton) emerges as a new villain, everything that Peter holds most important will be threatened.
Spider-Man: Homecoming sees Tom Holland and Marisa Tomei reprising their roles from Captain America: Civil War as Peter Parker/Spider-Man and Aunt May, alongside Marvel veterans Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark and Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan. New additions to the cast include Michael Keaton (Birdman), Jacob Batalon (North Woods), Michael Barbieri (Little Men), Zendaya (K.C. Undercover), Angourie Rice (The Nice Guys), Tony Revolori (The Grand Budapest Hotel), Logan Marshall-Green (Prometheus), Martin Starr (Silicon Valley), Donald Glover (Community), Laura Harrier (One Life to Live), Kenneth Choi (Captain America: The First Avenger), Hannibal Buress (Broad City), Isabella Amara (The Boss), Jorge Lendeborg, Jr. (Graceland), JJ Totah (Glee), Abraham Attah (Beasts of No Nation), Michael Mando (Better Call Saul), Selenis Leyva (Orange Is the New Black), Bokeem Woodbine (Riddick), Tyne Daly (Cagney & Lacey), Garcelle Beauvais (Hollywood Today Live), Tiffany Espensen (Kirby Buckets), Michael Chernus (Orange is the New Black), Jona Xiao (Halt and Catch Fire) and Martha Kelly (Baskets). The film is set for release on July 5th in the UK and July 7th in the States.
Originally published June 22, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
