Zendaya Explains Why She's 'Excited' for 'Spider-Man' Role: 'I Feel a Lot of People Doubt Me'

By
James White / Seventeen

Sorry, haters. Zendaya's career just keeps getting better!

The 20-year-old actress covers Seventeen magazine's October issue and shares why she's "excited" to be in the forthcoming Spider-Man: Homecoming film, what she likes about Snapchat, and more.


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With a year that has already included a cameo in the visual portion of Beyonce's Lemonade album and a newly announced collaboration with Michael Kors, playing Spider-Man's longtime love interest, Mary Jane, could become a career-altering role for the Disney star.

Of course, landing such a major gig doesn't come without backlash, but the haters motivate Zendaya to work harder.

"I feel a lot of people doubt me in the acting space because I've never done a big movie, and that's why I'm excited about doing Spider-Man," she tells the mag, which hits newsstands on Sept. 13. "I have no preconceived notions about how I'm supposed to deal with it. But I auditioned just like everybody else, and clearly I did something right."

Even though she's confident, Zendaya has her insecure moments -- especially when it comes to her own expectations. "I hold myself to such ridiculously high standards that if I don't meet or surpass them, I doubt myself," she reveals. "That fear of not being as good as you want to be can limit you from doing things."

James White / Seventeen
James White / Seventeen


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For fans who really want to get to know her "personality," Snapchat is their best bet.  "I like to be funny and make people laugh," she says before adding that Twitter is where she “interacts with fans," probably more than people would assume.

"I kind of stalk them," she jokes. "I'll send a little ‘Hey, girl’ or favorite their tweet."

Interacting on Instagram is a bit different for Zendaya. With over 31 million followers on the social media site, it would be easy to get lost in the thousands of comments, yet she rarely reads them.

"What I post on Instagram is about my outfit or my faith, and those are things that no one can tell me anything about. If I like it, I like it," she explains. "But if I’m posting something that is political, sometimes I do read comments to see what people are talking about and thinking."


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