Lonely? Try Euphoria star Zendaya’s quarantine fix to channel creativity

Whether you live alone or have someone to share your space with, there comes a time when you're left with just your own company and even Netflix or the best meditation apps (opens in new tab) can't help ease the stress of wanting to fill the void.

So what do you do? Well, Zendaya is so used to being around people, working on set as an actress that she's revealed her own struggles with not working due to the coronavirus pandemic.

But instead of baking another cake or taking part in the one-millionth Zoom quiz, in quarantine, Zendaya decided to hone her skills and boost her mood at the same time.

Speaking to Variety, Zendaya revealed a genius trick to help her cope with production shutting down on Season 2 of HBO series Euphoria two days before shooting was due to being last March.

She missed acting so much that she decided to do something about it. "I was definitely itching to do what I love because I hadn't been able to do it for so long. I live with my assistant, who's also like a brother to me," she said. "I told him, 'I’ll do some physical activity — I think it's good for me."

But instead of getting stuck into a workout, she dug out her hair-pieces and wigs and got stuck into role play.

• Love Zendaya? Watch the Euphoria special episodes online

She explained: "I have a whole bunch of wigs, from many years of being on red carpets, and I would put on a different wig and be a different character every day, and put on this performance for him for like an hour every day."

And it appears to have paid off. Not only did playing a new character every day at home during the coronavirus pandemic help her focus on an on-screen return - whenever restrictions allow her to reprise her role as Rue Bennett - but it also helped carve out a new project.

The Emmy winner persuaded Euphoria creator Sam Levinson to help her create a lockdown movie. The result was Malcolm & Marie, in which Zendaya and John David Washington play a couple who return home from his film premiere only for their relationship to be tested as revelations begin to surface. 

It ended up being one of the first movies to be shot under strict Covid-19 protocols, with the cast and few crew members having to isolate in Carmel, California while filming.

Speaking about the unexpected new role, Zendaya said: "[Marie] gave me an opportunity to use these words in a way. I don't yell. I'm not a very argumentative person, but it's nice to just release sh*t and be able to... I guess 'emote' would be the word? To just use her as this vessel to just get sh*t out that maybe I had pent up or hadn't said."