Malcolm & Marie: Zendaya addresses age gap backlash

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

John David Washington recently spoke on the age gap controversy between himself and his Malcolm & Marie co-star, Zendaya. There has been some criticism about the matter because Washington is 36 and Zendaya is 24 but the actor was quick to shut all of that down by saying the actress exudes a level of maturity that surpasses his own. She's a grown woman and not a child. Zendaya had been quiet about the matter until now and she seems to pinpoint the issue in a very professional manner. The fact of the matter is, Zendaya is a grown woman but during a chat with E!'s "Daily Pop", the actress understands why people have trouble seeing her as an adult.

I've played a 16-year-old since I was 16. You have to remember people also grew up with me as a child. It's like watching, I guess, your younger sibling, now they're grown, and you're not ready for it. It's hard for people to wrap their heads around the idea that I am grown in real life, even though I do play a teenager on television still.

Zendaya stepped into the limelight via the Disney Channel on the shows Shake It Up and K.C. Undercover. The Disney kid label is a hard one to distance yourself from but I think Zendaya has been making smart and strategic choices to step away from that label without disrespecting where she got her start. Zendaya has continued to play teenagers, typical of a performer who is around her age, but that isn't something that should be held against her when taking on more adult roles. I don't think a lot of "adult" actors can handle the depths she goes to on HBO's Euphoria, another show where she plays a teenager, albeit, engaging in much heavier subject matter. As MJ in the MCU Spider-Man films, she is also playing a teenager but the great thing about acting is showcasing a range that allows you to take on many different roles. From all the reviews I have read of Malcolm & Marie, Zendaya gives a standout performance in the films and her age is certainly not viewed as a detriment. The maturity of her performance has been referenced in several reviews which means Zendaya is an actress that she can still take on youthful roles while also commanding the screen in more mature efforts. 

Even though Zendaya is clearly aware of her Disney kid label, the actress revealed that she's grateful for her Disney start. During a chat with Carey Mulligan for "Variety's Actors on Actors", she admitted to being proud of where she came from but did say that the label had made her wary of taking risks in the past:

"I've always felt that I could bring things to the table: that I could be creative and free to try things, and put out bad ideas. Because of the Disney kid thing, I get scared of that kind of thing. Disney Channel is where I started, and I learned so much from that experience. It's just kind of been this slow progression, and I am happy that t's all been to prove it to myself and not to anybody else."

In Malcolm & Marie, Washington plays a filmmaker who returns home with his girlfriend (Zendaya) following a celebratory movie premiere as he awaits what’s sure to be an imminent critical and financial success. The evening suddenly takes a turn as revelations about their relationships begin to surface, testing the strength of their love. Not only is Zendaya one of the film's stars but she also serves as a producer on the project. This is a woman who has so much promise and so much more to offer and for people to make this age difference a sticking point, when they should really be paying attention to her performance, just means that they'll just be missing out on a true star on the rise. Beyond all of that, she's an adult everyone, time to start treating her like one.

What are YOUR thoughts on Zendaya's assessment of the age cap backlash?