Why Tom Holland Isn’t With Zendaya at the 2022 Emmys

Spider-Man co-stars turned real-life sweethearts Tom Holland and Zendaya decided not to make their Emmys couple debut on the red carpet this evening. Zendaya attended the ceremony solo, with Holland choosing to support his girlfriend and her best leading actress in a drama series nomination from afar. Holland was quiet on his social media today. His absence is understandable, though: Holland has been filming The Crowded Room in New York City, and the two have generally kept their relationship more private. He was last photographed on set two days ago. Zendaya has been filming Dune 2 in Budapest, Dubai, Jordan, and Italy. Holland went to visit her when she was shooting in Budapest.

Holland spoke to GQ last year about the public fascination with their relationship and how he never wanted it to be outed last summer when the two were filmed kissing in a car. “One of the downsides of our fame is that privacy isn’t really in our control anymore, and a moment that you think is between two people that love each other very much is now a moment that is shared with the entire world,” Holland said, alluding to the video. “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.”

Zendaya added by phone that she didn’t quite understand why people care so much about their dating. The public interest “was quite strange and weird and confusing and invasive,” she said. “The equal sentiment [we both share] is just that when you really love and care about somebody, some moments or things, you wish were your own… 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.”