Zendaya Almost Lost Chani, Rue, MJ, AND A Disney Franchise — Same Week, Basically

She Straightened Her Hair For The Audition Because She Assumed They Wanted A White MJ

Before Zendaya ever put on the mask-adjacent role of MJ, the character wasn't written for a Black actress at all — and she knew it walking in. She even changed her hair for the audition room, fully expecting Marvel to go with the industry's usual standard, only to find out they were already planning to diversify the casting.

Rue Almost Went To A Complete Unknown Who Had Actually Lived Rue's Story

Euphoria's casting director revealed that while Zendaya was always the top pick to play Rue, a street-scouted first-time actress with a real history of addiction was seriously in the running — complete with her own acting coach and auditions alongside Hunter Schafer. In the end, the team worried she couldn't handle the sheer stamina a multi-season HBO drama demands, and the role went to Zendaya instead.

Denis Villeneuve Actually Apologized For Making Her Audition For Chani

Zendaya wasn't handed Chani — she auditioned for the role alongside five other actresses after essentially inviting herself into the room before Dune was even actively casting. Villeneuve later admitted he didn't know her work well enough at the time, saying he regretted putting her through the process at all once he saw what she brought to the part.

A Whole Disney Franchise Turned Her Down — Right Before Spider-Man Took Off

Years before MJ, Zendaya auditioned "many times" for Disney's Descendants franchise and, according to a former Disney Channel casting exec, "really wanted it" — but it just didn't go her way. The same exec later wondered aloud whether missing that role was the exact reason Spider-Man: Homecoming happened when it did.

Before Malcolm & Marie Was Malcolm & Marie, It Was Almost A Horror Movie

When Euphoria's production shut down, Zendaya pushed Sam Levinson to write something they could quietly film together — and his first pitches were psychological thrillers and horror concepts, some of which she's said just "didn't make it." They landed instead on the black-and-white two-hander that became Malcolm & Marie, written specifically for her and shot in secret during lockdown.