Happy birthday, Zendaya! From Shake It Up to Spider-Man, how she conquered Hollywood...

Happy 26th birthday, Zendaya! The young star is taking over Hollywood with acclaimed roles in box office hits like 'Spider-Man: No Way Home', 'Dune' and 'The Greatest Showman'. But how much do you know about Zendaya? On her birthday on 1 September, read on to learn all about one of the hottest acting talents in the world today...

Zendaya landed a role in one of the most successful Disney Channel shows, 'Shake It Up', at the age of 13. Zendaya played Rocky Blue from 2010 to 2013. Rocky was a kind and intelligent animal advocate and vegetarian.

Before landing her first big Hollywood roles, the actress had a successful appearance on the ballroom TV show 'Dancing with the Stars' in 2013. Zendaya - who was just 16(!) - and her partner Valentin Chmerkovskiy got to the final. They ultimately just lost out to country music singer Kellie Pickler and her pro partner Derek Hough, who were awarded the glitterball trophy.

Zendaya landed her major Hollywood breakthrough when she landed the role of MJ in 2017 MCU blockbuster 'Spider-Man: Homecoming' Her performance opposite Tom Holland as Peter Parker and his superhero alter ego earned her rave reviews and led to even more than movie success...

The year 2017 continued to be a major moment in Zendaya's ascent. She played Anne Wheeler in director Michael Gracey's musical smash hit 'The Greatest Showman', sharing credits with big names such as Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron and Michelle Williams.

Not content with being a talented actress and dancer, Zendaya has also written a book. 'Between U and Me: How to Rock Your Tween Years with Style and Confidence' is a self-help book which aims to stir teens through their adolescence.

In 2018, Zendaya embarked on a partnership with fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger, in which in addition to being global brand ambassador, appearing in major campaigns and debuting on the runways of Paris, she created the Tommy x Zendaya collection, inspired by clothes from the 1970s.

Arguably the most important role in Zendaya's career to date is Rue Bennett, a teenager with addiction problems in the HBO series 'Euphoria'. Her performances as Rue made her the youngest recipient of the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.

Zendaya has African American, German, and Irish heritage, which is something that makes her feel very proud. Speaking to Hunger magazine, back in 2015, the ‘Euphoria’ star said: “America is such a melting pot - everyone’s from everywhere. The only people who are native are Native Americans. So everyone’s an immigrant in a sense. I have that pride in knowing that I’m an African American. I think when you develop pride in where you’re from then you have more respect and understanding in terms of where other people are from also.”

Zendaya has repeatedly stated she does not approve the digital editing of photos of herself. In an interview with New You magazine in 2016, the actress opened up on her views on Photoshop and filters. She said: “If there's any definition to being perfect, you're perfect at being yourself. No other person can be you 100 percent; no one has your fingerprint; no one has your DNA.”

Zendaya's alter ego MJ is the object of Peter Parker's affections in 'Spider-Man: Homecoming'. It seems that life does indeed imitate art as Tom Holland and Zendaya became very close off set...