Zendaya Was Set to Reunite With Challengers Director — Until She Bowed Out of a Polarizing Movie

Zendaya almost teamed up with Luca Guadagnino again after Challengers, but the reunion did not happen. The role went to Ayo Edebiri instead, and there is a very specific behind-the-scenes wrinkle about why.

The near-reunion that did not happen

While Guadagnino was putting together his 2025 film After the Hunt, Zendaya was circling a key part: Maggie Resnick. According to the film's cinematographer Malik Hassan Sayeed, that character was originally written as white. After Guadagnino decided to change Maggie's race, Zendaya became the obvious first call coming off Challengers. In the end, Zendaya stepped away and the role went to Ayo Edebiri.

"When I first read the script, Ayo's character was white. Her being Black was a layer Luca added. When casting started, Zendaya was going to play that part, a natural choice coming out of Challengers. And then Ayo was cast," Sayeed told Deadline.

The movie: plot and players

After the Hunt is a psychological thriller about a professor whose life tilts off its axis when a student makes a serious accusation against a colleague, and an old secret from the professor's past threatens to surface.

• Julia Roberts plays Alma Imhoff, a college professor at a personal and professional breaking point.
• Ayo Edebiri plays Maggie Resnick, the star student who accuses one of Alma's colleagues.
• Andrew Garfield plays the colleague at the center of the allegation.
• Luca Guadagnino directs from an original screenplay by Nora Garrett.

Awards hopes, then a hard landing

The plan was classic prestige rollout: position the film as an awards contender with a 2025 Venice Film Festival premiere and follow with a fall release. Once it actually hit theaters on October 10, the reception got rocky. Reviews were mixed, word of mouth was rough, and the box office never found a pulse.

So far, After the Hunt has earned $3.2 million domestically and $7.9 million worldwide. That is brutal against a reported $70–80 million budget, especially with Julia Roberts said to be making $20 million.

For context: Challengers did the opposite

Zendaya's last run with Guadagnino, Challengers, clicked with both critics and audiences. It opened in April 2024, cost about $55 million, and pulled in over $96 million worldwide. In other words: very different outcome.

Bottom line: Zendaya nearly led After the Hunt, but Ayo Edebiri ultimately took on Maggie Resnick after Guadagnino reimagined the character. The movie itself? Big swing, tough result.