On Wednesday evening in Leicester Square, Zendaya arrived at the London premiere of *Spider-Man: Brand New Day* in a bespoke ivory Tamara Ralph couture gown. The dress featured a sculpted bodice and a flowing mermaid tail intricately adorned with delicate crystal threads that mimicked the gossamer strands of a spider’s web. Gone were the dramatic wet-look “spider bangs” she had worn at the Los Angeles premiere two days earlier; instead, her hair fell in loose, voluminous natural waves. Her co-star and partner, Tom Holland, matched her in a burgundy Louis Vuitton suit with a matching tie and a striking spider brooch. The couple have consistently harmonised their red carpet appearances throughout the press tour, following Holland’s announcement in an *Esquire* interview in June that they had married.

The London look marked a subtle departure from the darker styling Zendaya had favoured at earlier stops. At the Los Angeles premiere on July 27, she wore a black satin corset dress by Ashi Studio with antennae and an architectural train, and hairstylist Ursula Stephen had styled her fringe into wet-look “spider bangs” that tapered across her forehead like spindly legs. In Berlin, she opted for a custom black Louis Vuitton leather two-piece, relying on oversized spider-web earrings and deliberately “spidery” lashes to carry the motif. In Rome, she wore a sheer black Giorgio Armani gown from the designer’s spring 1990 collection with silver cobweb-like beading. In Mexico City, she chose an asymmetric black Ashi Studio gown with intricate web-like detailing and Jacob & Co spider earrings. Across the tour, Zendaya and her stylist Law Roach have interpreted the same superhero through remarkably different lenses, from custom couture to archival threads.

The film itself, directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, picks up four years after the events of *Spider-Man: No Way Home*. Peter Parker (Holland) now lives as a hero recognised by the city but unknown to his loved ones after Doctor Strange’s spell erased his identity. Zendaya, who plays Michelle Jones-Watson, told BBC News that working with her husband on set was easy because “when you’re best friends, it’s pretty easy.” Holland said the cast had played these characters for ten years and “loved every minute of it.” The *Independent’s* Clarisse Loughrey declared the film “the best Spider-Man movie in more than 20 years,” giving it four stars, while the *Telegraph’s* Robbie Collin also awarded four stars, saying it “restores the gawkiness the franchise has been missing.”

Scores of fans turned out to catch a glimpse of the couple, who are also starring together in Christopher Nolan’s upcoming *The Odyssey*. Zendaya laughed when asked if her dress contained plot clues, replying, “Read into it how you will!” As flashbulbs flickered across the white carpet, the crystal threads on her gown caught the light, evoking the web of a spider spun in a sky of ice.