Zendaya Says That Directing a Movie and Playing a Villain Are on Her Career Bucket List

Zendaya is known for playing many diverse roles in TV shows and movies, including Euphoria, The Greatest Showman, the MCU’s Spider-Man movies, Dune: Parts 1 & 2, and the upcoming tennis drama, Challengers, but she has some ideas for where else she’d like to see her career go in the future.

In a recent video interview for Elle magazine (via Variety), the Emmy winner said she would like to play a villain role in the future. Zendaya noted that the majority of her output as been playing “the good guy,” which is a trend she wants to break.

“I would love to play a villain of sorts. Tap into that evil, supervillain vibe. Whatever that manifests in, I don’t think necessarily in a superhero sense but in an emotional sense. I feel like I usually play the good guy, so I’d like to play the bad guy.”

Also on Zendaya’s bucket list is directing — if she can get over her fears. She’s already got acting and producing under her belt.

“[I want to] direct one day. To direct a film, hopefully more than just one, but just doing it. The first step to actually doing something yourself is not an easy step to take, so hopefully I can get over the fear.”

Zendaya spoke to Elle before the SAG-AFTRA strike on behalf of her leading role in Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers, in which she plays a tennis superstar who gets caught in a love triangle with two rival male stars, played by Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist. The drama was supposed to open the Venice Film Festival and go wide in September, before the studio delayed the film. Challengers will now open in 2024. Zendaya’s other major 2023 release, Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two, has also delayed and will open March 15, 2024 from Warner Bros.