It’s true that Hollywood has almost no rising stars. Even those who seemed untouchable, like Tom Cruise, have stumbled at the box office sooner or later. There’s only one person left setting the pace of American cinema: Zendaya, who this year has released The Drama, Spider-Man: Brand New Day and still has Dune 3 ahead of her, as well as the final season of Euphoria. No one can rival her, and that’s going to lead to something hugely interesting: she’ll get to choose her own projects.
Zenda, now
It’s hard to get mad at Zendaya for appearing in blockbusters when, at the same time, she’s chosen to star next in Alex Garland’s new project, an as-yet-untitled science-fiction film for A24 which will pair the actress with one of the most formidable filmmakers of the last few years. We still know little else, beyond the fact that it will start shooting in 2027.
It’s worth noting that Garland will release his adaptation of Elden Ring in 2028, which is going to generate plenty of headlines (although its nearly two years of post-production suggest they’re preparing something worthwhile), but without a doubt his most interesting works are the more independent ones: Ex Machina, Men, Warfare or, above all, Civil War, the film that anticipated what the United States would be like in 2026.
By the way, Garland, like Zendaya, never stops, and he’s supposedly written a fantastic script for the third installment of 28 Years Later, which has been on hold since the second was released. Some of Hollywood may be in trouble, but there are two people who have no shortage of work: Who’d dare bet against Zendaya at this point?
