Zainab Jiwa: My viral moment with Zendaya at The Odyssey premiere
Independent content creator Zainab Jiwa gained viral fame after a brief, positive interaction with Zendaya at a film premiere. The event highlights the growing influence of independent fashion creators in the Hollywood red carpet ecosystem.
Why it matters
It illustrates the shifting power dynamics in celebrity culture, where social media creators can achieve significant visibility alongside traditional media.
Image source, Zainab Jiwa Image caption, Zendaya's reaction to Zainab's outfit got 19m TikTok views
This was 29-year-old Zainab Jiwa, calling out for help squeezing into a corset while filming a "get-ready-with-me" TikTok video. It's a scene many 20-somethings still living at home will relate to.
The difference is, Zainab was on her way to the recent London premiere of The Odyssey, one of the summer's biggest blockbusters.
She was invited there as a guest and says she caught the eye of Hollywood megastar Zendaya, thanks to her custom look: a striking gold gown complete with a hood.
"She just walked past, and she saw me there. Her jaw just dropped, so did mine," Zainab tells me.
"It was just a stare-off for a minute, and she was like, 'Oh my god, amazing, amazing,' and then she just walked off."
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