Zendaya opens up about importance of 'safety' during Challengers sex scenes
The intimacy coordinator was crucial to the process
Zendaya's latest role is in tennis-based drama/romance Challengers, out 26 April, in which she stars opposite Josh O'Connor and Mike Faist.
The film is quite sexy in nature, so the cast had some support when filming the more erotic scenes throughout — something which Z herself has said was incredibly important.
"We had an intimacy coordinator which was fantastic and very helpful, because it was important that we felt safe," the actress said during a promo stop in Rome (via The Hollywood Reporter).
Zendaya added: "I spoke with my colleagues so that we could find a way to feel at ease. We played tennis together, we went out together, we rehearsed together. We got to bond and feel good with each other."
Intimacy coordinators are a relatively new development on film sets, with respected actors such as Emma Thompson praising the addition. Kate Winslet has even said that she would have loved to have intimacy coordinators present on set when she was starting her career.
As for Challengers, it's the latest film from director Luca Guadagnino, who is known for Call Me By Your Name and Bones and All, both starring Z's friend and Dune costar Timothée Chalamet.
The promo tour has taken the cast and crew from Sydney to Paris to Rome, with Zendaya continually "serving" stunning tennis-based outfits.
In Rome, the star paired a tenniswear-inspired lamé dress with high heels adorned with tennis balls:
Throughout the press tour, Zendaya has stuck to a green-theme, presumably recalling the colour of tennis balls and courts. In Paris, she opted for a stunning mini coat-dress in green and white checks:
And in Sydney, she opted for a sparkly green gown featuring a person playing tennis on it:
Zendaya is not only a fashion queen (aided on that mission by her legendary stylist Law Roach), but she's also the queen of dressing on theme for whatever film she's promoting — as evidenced by her collection of spider-inspired outfits for Spider-Man and her spacey outfits for Dune. What can't she do?!
