Why Zendaya is a queer icon
Zendaya has proven she’s a queer icon by wanting to direct a romance movie about two Black girls.
The Euphoria star cemented herself as an LGBTQ+ ally through her character Rue, who struggled with compulsory heterosexuality throughout the show. Coupling up with Jules, played by Hunter Schafer, the pair shared many onscreen moments that were game-changing for queer and trans representation.
Now, Zendaya has hinted at plans to direct a romance movie with two Black girls as co-stars. She’s said that the move would fill her with joy and “fulfil” her as an artist, further expressing her desire to give young, Black girls a coming-of-age story not rooted in trauma.
The 27-year-old hasn’t yet announced when she’ll be embarking on these plans, but for now, she’s sent fans wild by starring in a new Bulgari advert alongside Anne Hathaway.
The clip has been labelled the “sapphic film of our dreams”, with one fan writing that the plot involved Zendaya and Hathaway being “elite spies and ex-lovers”.
Zendaya has spoken up for LGBTQ+ rights numerous times throughout her career, and recently corrected a reporter during a Vanity Fair interview who asked about what she looks for in a man. “What I most look for in a person, how about that?” she chimed back. The interview broke the internet, with numerous LGBTQ+ fans applauding her.
Likewise, she’s thanked gay men for being “slay” and labelled herself an unapologetic trans ally. Asked by British Vogue what she believed feminism looked like, she responded that she believed it had to be intersectional.
“Women that look like you, women who don’t look like you, women whose experiences are different than you,” she responded. “That means Black women, that means trans women, that means all women.”
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