Zendaya is Marie Claire's September 2018 cover star and you'll find the 21-year-old actor serving LEWKS and commanding respect in this issue.
Zendaya has never been one to shy away from speaking her mind, especially when it comes to issues that affect women and the black community. So, when it came to discussing how she chooses acting roles, Zendaya kept things candid.
The Oakland native revealed "most things [she goes] out for" aren't written for black girls, like her role in Spiderman: Homecoming.
She went into the audition hoping they would — "as they call it in the industry — 'go ethnic.'" She even made the decision to straighten her hair to boost her chances.
"I didn’t know that they were going to be more diverse in their casting. I didn’t know that I was walking into a situation where they were already breaking the rules. You get so used to having to break the rules for people."
"There was a lot of not getting the audition that I wanted and often going out for parts that weren’t written for a girl who looks like me and just saying, 'Hey, see me anyway,' until the right thing stuck."
"Anytime it says they’re looking for white girls, send me out [to the audition]. Let me get in the room. Maybe they’ll change their minds."
But despite her diverse resume and success in the industry, Zendaya said she's still afraid to make a mistake as a black woman in Hollywood.
"What my white peers would be able to get away with at this point in their career is not something that I will be able to do. I don’t want to jeopardize it at any point because I am not allowed the room to mess up."
