Is Lou becoming more ruthless?
The dynamic between Zendaya and Sidney Sweeney was decidedly less than euphoric at Tuesday night’s Euphoria season 3 premiere in Los Angeles.
The co-stars avoided each other at the star-studded event, which reportedly came as no surprise to some colleagues.
“Euphoria bosses are well aware of the rift between the pair. There has been tension for a long time…During the production of Season 3, their paths hardly crossed,” a source claimed to The Sun. “During the press tour, interactions between the two are kept to a minimum to avoid any awkward moments in front of the cameras. Journalists are completely prohibited from asking questions about the tension between Zendaya and Sydney.”
The main reason for their alleged feud has to do with none other than Zendaya’s fiancé, actor Tom Holland.
“It was an open secret that Sydney had a crush on Tom and would flirt with him every time he came on set,” a source claimed. “That didn’t work out with Zendaya. They haven’t been hanging out very socially since then.”
Zendaya and her Spider-Man: Homecoming co-star Holland, both 29, are reportedly married, but have yet to confirm the news.
The tension between Zendaya and Sweeney, who were once friendly, appears to have been building up over the years. Last month, fans noticed that Sweeney was noticeably absent from a group photo of “Euphoria” promoting the new season.
A source said about the actresses, “They will breathe a sigh of relief once ‘Euphoria’ ends and they can go their separate ways.” “But they both have decades left in Hollywood, so it’s inevitable that this rivalry will continue.”
Political differences between the two are also driving a wedge, as Sweeney is a registered Republican, the Sun said.
“They haven’t had a huge falling out, but Zendaya has quietly distanced herself from Sid. Their politics are very different,” a source told The Sun. “Zendaya doesn’t want to associate with Trump supporters, so that’s kind of annoying.”
According to The Sun, in 2020, Zendaya posted on Instagram about President Trump: “Get rid of this midfielder.” Two years later, Sweeney, 28, shared photos from her mother’s 60th birthday party, a hoedown-themed party where guests wore MAGA-style hats.
In July, the actress received a pep talk from President Trump after her controversial partnership with American Eagle denim. The campaign, titled “Sidney Sweeney has great jeans,” sparked a debate about Western beauty standards and “woke culture.”
“Sidney Sweeney, a registered Republican, is running the ‘hottest’ ad,” President Trump wrote on Truth Social at the time. “Jeans are ‘disappearing from the shelves’. Go catch them Sydney!
Despite the uproar, Sweeney was all smiles as he walked the red carpet at the TCL Chinese Theater on Tuesday night. She posed for photos with other cast members in line for interviews, including Maud Apatow, Alexa Demme, and Hunter Schaefer.
Meanwhile, Zendaya arrived fashionably late, narrowly avoiding a confrontation with Sweeney. Their co-star and Zendaya’s ex-boyfriend Jacob Elordi was also late to the carpet, skipping the interview and only posing for photos.
Zendaya also did not attend the cast’s official afterparty at the Chateau Marmont later that night.
This distance was a marked contrast to when Zendaya and Sweeney posed together in the season 1 and season 2 premieres of the HBO series. And Sweeney praised Zendaya’s leadership in a 2022 interview with Access Hollywood.
“I’m really lucky because I didn’t get to work with her that much last season,” Sweeney said of the “Euphoria” star. “It’s really cool to be able to watch her and see how much of a boss (she is).”
On Tuesday night, Sweeney was joined by her boyfriend Scooter Braun at the premiere while Holland was home. She and her fiancé Jonathan Davino broke up in March 2025 after seven years of dating.
Despite Sweeney and Zendaya distancing themselves from each other, sources close to the situation have shut down reports and said rumors of a feud are inaccurate.
“They are both in high demand and continue to work,” a source told Page Six.
According to another source, Zendaya, like Elordi, actually missed a meeting with the cast because of the aforementioned tardiness. She arrived much later than Sweeney, Demme, Apatow, and Schaefer.
Representatives for Sweeney and Zendaya did not respond to Page Six’s requests for comment.
Zendaya made a brief stop right after promoting her A24 movie The Drama alongside Robert Pattinson.
She also appeared in three films this year, directed by Christopher Nolan: The Odyssey, Dune: Part 3, and Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
Sweeney and Elordi, both 28, have appeared in their latest films, The Housemaid and Wuthering Heights, respectively, and are similarly booked and busy.
