Zendaya Quietly Unfollowed Everyone—Including Tom Holland—on Instagram
Zendaya took a page from Blake Lively and countless other celebs’ PR playbooks and unfollowed everyone she was following on Instagram yesterday. Among them was her boyfriend Tom Holland. Holland still follows her account.
Tom Holland still following Zendaya as of 9:40 A.M. on January 4.
Zendaya’s zero following count.
Zendaya’s last post, shared on January 1, was to promote her upcoming film Challengers. “Challengers April 26th,” she wrote. “Wishing you all the most beautiful new year✨” Other celebrities have removed all their Instagram posts or unfollowed everyone when they are about to announce a new project to stoke curiosity and build hype.
The couple themselves was seen over the holidays, attending the musical The Little Big Things on London’s West End right before Christmas. They posed with star Malinda Parris backstage in a photo Parris shared online. She called Holland and Zendaya “the SWEETEST.”
Zendaya spoke with ELLE last summer about the public interest in her relationship with Holland. When asked whether the public approval of them dating made it easier to accept the attention, she said, “Parts of my life, I accept, are going to be public. I can’t not be a person and live my life and love the person I love. But also, I do have control over what I choose to share. It’s about protecting the peace and letting things be your own but also not being afraid to exist. You can’t hide. That’s not fun, either. I am navigating it more than ever now.”
She even cited the period when she was filming Challengers as the moment she noticed the shift in how much attention she was getting. It was “after the last Spider-Man and the last season of Euphoria, there was a visceral change,” she said. “Before, I could get away with going places and getting in and out. But in Boston [last spring], I would end up going right back home, because it was really overstimulating. Everybody would go hang out at a bar or something, and I’d be like, ‘I’d love to, but I think I could ruin everybody’s night. Because it’s just not going to be fun once I’m there.’”
Alyssa Bailey is the senior news and strategy editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage of celebrities and royals (particularly Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton). She previously held positions at InStyle and Cosmopolitan. When she’s not working, she loves running around Central Park, making people take #ootd pics of her, and exploring New York City.