Zendaya and Tom Holland's relationship in their own words after Spider-Man friendship

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Zendaya and Tom Holland's relationship in their own words after Spider-Man friendship

Holland said secrets pictures published of them kissing 'stole' their privacy, and has admitted he has nightmares about paparazzi

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Zendaya and Tom Holland’s relationship blossomed out of a friendship on the set of the Spider-Man films, with the pair now starring in their fourth together: Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

With the release of a trailer for the new Spider-Man film, Dune 3 releasing a first-look trailer yesterday, Zendaya’s wedding film with Robert Pattinson The Drama being just around the corner, and both starring in Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, it’s fair to say that Zendaya and Holland are the living embodiment of a Hollywood power couple.

Despite this though the pair have always been incredibly private about their relationship to one another, only making rare and occasional comments.

Speculation has been swirling that the pair secretly got married earlier this year, leading Zendaya to start wearing a wedding ring (but could it all be just promo for The Drama? Only time will tell) and the actor to call out AI pictures of the two getting married. This bizarre overreach into their relationship by those on social media however has been a theme throughout their time together.

The pair began dating secretly after a friendship on the Spider-Man films until their privacy was ‘stolen’ from them

The pair had their relationship exposed by invasive paparazzi pictures of a private moment in 2021 (David M. Benett/Dave Benett/WireImage)
The pair had their relationship exposed by invasive paparazzi pictures of a private moment in 2021 (David M. Benett/Dave Benett/WireImage)

The pair met in 2017 whilst auditioning for Spider-Man: Homecoming and, whilst there were rumours of a relationship, were adamant for years that they remained simply good friends.

In 2021 however paparazzi pictures were published of the pair kissing in a car, leading to the world discovering their secret relationship.

Holland has spoken about this invasion of privacy, telling GQ in a profile that one of the downsides of fame is that they ‘don’t control their privacy’. He added: “I’ve always been really adamant to keep my private life private, because I share so much of my life with the world anyway. We sort of felt robbed of our privacy.” The Spider-Man actor has since added that he often has nightmares of paparazzi entering his home.

The pair are once again starring together in Spider-Man: Brand New Day (Disney)
The pair are once again starring together in Spider-Man: Brand New Day (Disney)

Holland added that he didn’t like talking without Zendaya because it isn’t ‘his story’ it was both their stories. Zendaya added over the phone that the interest in their relationship ‘was quite strange and weird and confusing and invasive’. She finally added: “I think loving someone is a sacred thing and a special thing and something that you want to deal with and go through and experience and enjoy amongst the two people that love each other.”

Zendaya and Tom Holland speak incredibly highly of one another whenever they are asked

In 2021 Zendaya heaped praise on the actor and how he deals with being Spider-Man, saying: “In an actor way, I appreciate that he really loves being Spider-Man.

"It's a lot of pressure -- you take on the role of a superhero wherever you go. To the little kid who walks by, you are Spider-Man. I think he handled that so well.”

Tom Holland and Zendaya at the Spider-Man: No Way Home premiere (Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)
Tom Holland and Zendaya at the Spider-Man: No Way Home premiere (Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)

The pair actually don’t walk red carpets together, with Holland having attended the Dune: Part Two premiere in 2024 but not walking the red carpet with her.

Speaking in a Men’s Health feature Holland said: “Because it's not my moment, it's her moment, and if we go together, it's about us.”

After it was announced that the pair would be working together outside the MCU for the first time in The Odyssey Zendaya said she ‘loved’ working with him, adding: “He's so talented, and so passionate about what he does. He always gives things one thousand per cent, even if he's absolutely worn down. I really appreciate that about him. It feels pretty normal. That's how we met. Literally, at a chemistry read.”

The pair have not confirmed their rumoured marriage, but Zendaya has hit out at the AI pictures of their supposed ‘wedding’

Zendaya appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! earlier this week to promote The Drama where she mocked the ongoing interest in her supposed marriage to Holland.

Zendaya showed a video in which Holland’s face was crudely edited onto Robert Pattinson’s from the marriage-based film, as well as addressing viral AI generated photos of their ‘wedding’.

She said: “Many people have been fooled by them, while I was just out and about in real life people were like 'oh my god, your wedding photos are gorgeous'," She explained.

"I was like, 'babe, they're AI, they're not real, they're not real'."

The pair are incredibly sweet whenever they are shown together or asked about one another, but I think we can all agree on one thing about their relationship: everyone needs to be far more normal about them right now.


Featured Image Credit: Ricky Vigil M / Justin E Palmer/GC Images

Topics: Zendaya, Tom Holland, Spider-Man, TV and Film, Celebrity, Sex and Relationships