Zendaya addresses ‘secret wedding’ pictures in new interview
Zendaya said “many people” had fallen for viral AI-generated photos of her wedding.
The actress, who stars in sci-fi series Dune, said she had been forced to alert many of her friends that online images of a wedding between her and Spider-Man co-star Tom Holland were fake.
Zendaya – who became engaged to Holland in 2024 – told Jimmy Kimmel on his talk show that “many people” close to her had been fooled by the pictures, including those upset they had not been invited to the “wedding”.
During the talk show, in which Zendaya appeared to promote her new film The Drama, Kimmel said: “People make these AI wedding photos that look very realistic of you guys together.”
Zendaya, 29, responded: “Yes, and many people have been fooled by them.
“I was out and about in real life and people were like: ‘Oh my God, your wedding photos were gorgeous.’
“And I was like: ‘Babe, they’re AI. They are not real.’”
When Kimmel asked “was anyone in your life fooled by them and mad that they weren’t invited?” the actress responded: “Many people.”
One photo spread online shows Zendaya and Holland, also 29, posing for a selfie with an ornate backdrop that resembled gardens surrounded by a lake.
The image features a depiction of Zendaya dressed in a satin wedding dress and lace veil pouting and holding the cheeks of her fiance, who appears in a tuxedo.
Other images shared by social media users on X appeared to show Holland’s Spider-Man co-stars Robert Downey Jr, Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield and Jake Gyllenhaal alongside the couple at the ceremony.
Zendaya skirted Kimmel’s question about whether she has privately married Holland. Speculation of a secret wedding has grown after the actress was seen at Paris Fashion Week with a gold band accompanying her engagement ring.
When the chat-show host asked about rumours of the nuptials, Zendaya joked: “Really? I haven’t seen any of them.”
However, her stylist, Law Roach, told Access Hollywood earlier this month: “The wedding has already happened. You missed it.”
The couple, who met in 2017 during the making of Spider-Man Homecoming, have insisted on keeping their love life private.
Holland previously told The Hollywood Reporter: “Our relationship is something that we are incredibly protective of and we want to keep as sacred as possible ... It has nothing to do with our careers.”
Zendaya told GQ she wanted to keep moments her own. 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.”
As AI technology becomes more sophisticated, numerous celebrities have fallen victim to artificial images.
In 2024, AI photos of Katy Perry supposedly attending the Met Gala circulated online, despite her not being present at the event. The singer reposted them on her social media account and said even her own mother was fooled.
Earlier this year, deepfake pornography was made illegal in the UK after obscene images of singer Taylor Swift were created and shared online, with one being viewed 47 million times on X before it was removed.
The Telegraph, London