Zendaya skillfully dodged a sensitive question about intimate moments during the Challengers press tour.
Zendaya adeptly maneuvers the press circuit, whether she’s walking the red carpet or engaging with journalists.
In April, she traveled around the globe with co-stars Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor to promote their upcoming film Challengers, captivating audiences with her elegance. Her striking Challengers premiere outfits impressed, and her candid interview with Vogue provided a rare peek into her life.
Similar to her experience during the Dune: Part Two promotional tour, questions about on-screen intimacy have become a recurring theme.
Interviewer Edwina Bartholomew from ‘Sunrise’ asked Zendaya which co-star was a better kisser. Zendaya, visibly surprised, leaned back with a puzzled look. Her choice to remain silent could have been seen as a momentary misunderstanding of the question.
Mike stepped in, jokingly saying that Josh was the superior kisser, trying to ease the tension and shield Zendaya from such queries. She laughed at the interaction and quipped, “Imma let y’all take that.”
Similarly, at the Dune: Part Two premiere in France, Zendaya was asked about filming a kissing scene with her co-star Timothée Chalamet.
Once again, she avoided the question before replying, “Well I think it’s our job. So no it’s not, I think it’s not our first rodeo and we have an incredible director that, you know, helps guide the scenes and we’re in such good hands and so well supported.”
Willy Wonka star Timothée also faced scrutiny. Speaking from the red carpet, he mentioned that the experience wasn’t unusual “because we’re you know pushing thirty and have been great friends for years, so it’s just the nature of the job on this one. And the nature of the script, it’s not more complicated than that.”
Both Zendaya and Timothée were questioned by Entertainment Tonight about the authenticity of their kissing scenes, firmly denying any suggestion that it felt natural, as Timothée stressed their strictly “platonic” relationship.
Despite Zendaya admitting, “it’s a little weird”, the pair reiterated their professionalism, with Timothée joking, “We are so tight now that it really just is another day at work.”
“I don’t know what that says about the nature of our job,” he humorously added.
While filming Challengers, Zendaya disclosed that she and her co-stars created a ‘secure’ environment by training together daily, fostering camaraderie.
She also credited the success of their intimate scenes to the presence of an intimacy coordinator.
