Zendaya Confirms 'Spider-Man' to Ellen DeGeneres - and Marvel Didn't Hand Her the Role!

Zendaya has been growing in popularity, first from her co-starring role in Shake It Up! and later for being a fierce lady who's not afraid to speak her mind, but that doesn't mean roles rain on her -- in a recent appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, the actress confirmed she'd be in Marvel's Spider-Man reboot, and she had to audition multiple times, just like anyone else!

The 19-year-old actress went on DeGeneres' show earlier this week, and she could finally confirm rumors that she'd been cast in the film. Of course, considering how secretive Disney is about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Zendaya can't say much about her role or generally plans for the movie, but she's definitely going to be around -- even if her role in the reboot remains unclear.

Still, Zendaya had to fight her way into the MCU as everyone else, even though she already has worked with Disney in the past.

"I auditioned and auditioned and auditioned and [broke] down those walls because a lot of people do have that pre-conceived notion of who I am based off previous things I've done, so you got to really break that down and go hard, put in the work, take all the meetings, take all the auditions," Zendaya told DeGeneres.

Earlier this week, when rumors of her casting began, Variety said the actress had landed a "key role" in the upcoming superhero film, though she's "neither a love interest nor a lead role." Still, it seems the character's fairly important in the movie and its upcoming sequels, which haven't been announced yet.

In the film, Zendaya will be joining a cast starring Tom Holland as the title character (he'll make his MCU début in this year's Captain America: Civil War) and Academy Award-winning actress Marisa Tomei as Aunt May. The rest of the cast (including possibly the re-introduction of Gwen Stacy) hasn't been announced just yet, though the film should begin shooting soon; Spidey comes out after Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, which is currently in production in Atlanta.

The Spider-Man reboot will be reaching theaters on July 7, 2017.

via GIPHY