2026 might as well be called “The Year of Zendaya,” as she has a lot on her plate. Already, she’s intrigued audiences by helping to show the wild side of pre-marital conflicts in The Drama. The long-awaited third season of Euphoria has also been airing. And, later this year, she’ll star in 2026 movie releases like Dune: Part Three and The Odyssey (which also stars her The Drama co-star, Robert Pattinson). That sounds like a lot, and I had second-hand anxiety for Zendaya when she discussed working on Euphoria, Dune, and The Odyssey simultaneously.
Zendaya got her start on the Disney Channel, so it’s impressive to think that she’s now one of Hollywood’s most-sought-after talents. Still, the sheer volume of projects she had to work on over the last year is just wild. The star opened up about that working experience with Elle, and I dare you not to get stressed out while reading the comments:
I remember being on set for Euphoria; it was a night shoot at a ranch. I was so tired, but I was also learning my Chakobsa lines for Dune. And then I started writing out my lines to memorize for that quick turnaround trip I was going to make to Iceland [for The Odyssey]. It’s not like I have a lot of lines in The Odyssey, but I was working with Christopher Nolan! The most embarrassing thing in life would be messing up my lines, which did happen once.
Considering what a prolific filmmaker Christopher Nolan is, I would have anxiety as well if I messed up in the Oscar winner’s presence as well. The whole situation just sounds so incredibly stressful on its own let alone having to get into character for Rue in Euphoria, learn lines in a different language for Dune’s Chani and then travel to Iceland for The Odyssey.
How does she do it, you may ask? The Challengers actress previously said she credited good scheduling and her team for her ability to film all of her projects at once. Learning how to juggle is a real balancing act that the Emmy winner has clearly mastered. Unsurprisingly, she can also hit her lines, and Nolan had some grace for her when speaking to the aforementioned outlet:
We would be in the maddest, craziest situations, just all of us fighting the elements, tearing our hair out, all these things going on, and she would sort of parachute in from her other job with this sense of true grace and poise.
Aww, I love that! Such comments shouldn’t be surprising either, as Nolan is a filmmaker who’s proven he knows how to work with actors. He had quite a few to work with in his upcoming historical epic, for which he cast Zendaya as Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom. Nolan spoke more about the Greatest Showman taking on such a significant character in his adaptation of Homer’s epic poem:
I mean, she’s literally playing a goddess; it’s a tall order. She’s a true movie star, but also an incredible actor.
The ability to simultaneously juggle a lot of roles at once is definitely an outstanding skill for an actor to have Even Zendaya’s Odyssey co-star, Matt Damon, said he was impressed with her doing work on their epic fantasy flick together and then having to go film Euphoria right after. I love that Damon even joked about his envy of only getting a “good” from Nolan after completing a scene, only for Zendaya to receive a “perfect” from their director.
As stressful as it may be to know Zendaya was flipping back and forth between Euphoria, Dune and The Odyssey, I also applaud her for getting it all done. But, after her high-profile run, the A-lister is planning take a page from Jennifer Lawrence’s playbook and just be low-key for a while. She told Elle she’ll still stay busy with family and launching the running shoe and apparel brand, On, with longtime stylist Law Roach. I’d say she’s more than earned a rest.
See Zendaya in The Odyssey, which opens in theaters on July 17 and, just two weeks later, she’ll appear alongside Tom Holland in Spider-Man: Brand New Day on July 31. Also, be sure to check her out in Dune: Part Three, which hits cinemas on December 18.