Bella Thorne and ‘Spider-Man’ Star Zendaya Were Pitted Against Each Other as Kids on the Disney Channel

Bella Thorne and Zendaya became two of Disney Channel’s biggest young stars when they played best friends CeCe Jones and Rocky Blue on Shake It Up. But behind the scenes, Thorne says their friendship was tested because the two young actresses were constantly being compared and pushed against each other.

Speaking on the Call Her Daddy podcast, Thorne opened up about how intense the pressure became when they were both just 12 years old. She explained that the entertainment industry often creates competition between young female stars instead of allowing them to support each other.

“With women it’s like, ‘We have to make you all beg for one spot… if you can beat each other down and scrap to whatever extent we’re asking you two [and] eat yourselves alive while we have all these spots but for women, it’s just one of you,’” Thorne said. She added, “You go back and we were 12! What’s wrong with you? We are supposed to be best friends. We play best friends. It got pretty bad.”

Shake It Up became a major success for Disney Channel, running for three seasons and 75 episodes from 2010 to 2013. The show helped launch both actresses into the spotlight, but Thorne said the attention also created an unhealthy dynamic where people treated them like rivals instead of friends.

According to Thorne, the situation became so uncomfortable that she and Zendaya decided to step away from the pressure and have an honest conversation during production. The moment happened while filming a crossover episode with Good Luck Charlie, when the two secretly left the set to talk privately.

“We escaped to another set in the middle of live taping — which is really ballsy, badass and rebellious. We snuck out,” Thorne recalled. “We knew we had three scenes until we were up again and we like just went to talk.”

The conversation helped the two young actresses understand what they were both experiencing. Thorne described the discussion as a turning point in their friendship, saying they were able to speak openly about the rumors, pressure, and outside forces creating tension between them.

Bella Thorne and Zendaya became two of Disney Channel’s biggest young stars when they played best friends CeCe Jones and Rocky Blue on Shake It Up. But behind the scenes, Thorne says their friendship was tested because the two young actresses were constantly being compared and pushed against each other.

Speaking on the Call Her Daddy podcast, Thorne opened up about how intense the pressure became when they were both just 12 years old. She explained that the entertainment industry often creates competition between young female stars instead of allowing them to support each other.

“With women it’s like, ‘We have to make you all beg for one spot… if you can beat each other down and scrap to whatever extent we’re asking you two [and] eat yourselves alive while we have all these spots but for women, it’s just one of you,’” Thorne said. She added, “You go back and we were 12! What’s wrong with you? We are supposed to be best friends. We play best friends. It got pretty bad.”

Shake It Up became a major success for Disney Channel, running for three seasons and 75 episodes from 2010 to 2013. The show helped launch both actresses into the spotlight, but Thorne said the attention also created an unhealthy dynamic where people treated them like rivals instead of friends.

According to Thorne, the situation became so uncomfortable that she and Zendaya decided to step away from the pressure and have an honest conversation during production. The moment happened while filming a crossover episode with Good Luck Charlie, when the two secretly left the set to talk privately.

“We escaped to another set in the middle of live taping — which is really ballsy, badass and rebellious. We snuck out,” Thorne recalled. “We knew we had three scenes until we were up again and we like just went to talk.”

The conversation helped the two young actresses understand what they were both experiencing. Thorne described the discussion as a turning point in their friendship, saying they were able to speak openly about the rumors, pressure, and outside forces creating tension between them.

“We got into it, hashed it out, and it was so beautiful,” she said. “It was my first experience — woman to woman, girl to girl — where you actually can speak. You can both be heard about the different things you’ve been experiencing and what people are saying and how they’re trying to do this to you.”

Thorne added that the conversation allowed them to leave the situation with a better understanding of each other. “You can walk out of there seeing each other… It was one of the most genuine girl-on-girl talks,” she explained.

This was not the first time Thorne discussed the challenges of that period. In a 2021 interview with Us Weekly, she admitted that the comparisons affected their relationship early on. “All of a sudden everyone is pitting you against each other and that fed into our heads. It made us not [be] friends in that first season,” she said.

Years later, both actresses have gone on to build successful careers outside Disney. Thorne’s comments show how difficult it can be for young performers to navigate fame, especially when outside pressure turns friendships into competition.

“We got into it, hashed it out, and it was so beautiful,” she said. “It was my first experience — woman to woman, girl to girl — where you actually can speak. You can both be heard about the different things you’ve been experiencing and what people are saying and how they’re trying to do this to you.”

Thorne added that the conversation allowed them to leave the situation with a better understanding of each other. “You can walk out of there seeing each other… It was one of the most genuine girl-on-girl talks,” she explained.

This was not the first time Thorne discussed the challenges of that period. In a 2021 interview with Us Weekly, she admitted that the comparisons affected their relationship early on. “All of a sudden everyone is pitting you against each other and that fed into our heads. It made us not [be] friends in that first season,” she said.

Years later, both actresses have gone on to build successful careers outside Disney. Thorne’s comments show how difficult it can be for young performers to navigate fame, especially when outside pressure turns friendships into competition.

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