She claims it’s an homage to the Spider-Man franchise, but is Zendaya’s new hair color actually a tease that she’ll play another iconic character? That’s what fans were wondering after seeing the ingenue with a decidedly red mane during a London photocall for Spider-Man: Far From Home.
Could an announcement of Zendaya playing Ariel in a live-action remake of The Little Mermaid be far behind?
We can only hope, but for now, no, Zendaya is not part of that world—at least, not yet. The new look was simply due to a semi-permanent dye, which the new star of HBO’s Euphoria wrote was an homage to the “MJ” legacy in the film franchise, first embodied by Kirsten Dunst as Mary Jane, and now by Zendaya as friend-turned-romantic interest Michelle (who notably, is portrayed as a brunette, like the actress).
But as Elle points out, there has been significant buzz about a Little Mermaid reboot on the horizon, and even more speculation about Zendaya as a possible lead. In fact, as recently as Saturday, there were casting rumors floating around on social media.
But if there’s any truth to the rumors, Zendaya is refusing to fuel them, leaving us poor, unfortunate souls all simply wishing and hoping our Disney dreams can come true (put Lizzo in as Ursula, and we’re there). So, for now, a dye job—however apropos—is just a dye job, no matter how much we’d like to see Zendaya’s talents in action “Under the Sea.”