Kadeem Hardison portrayed his former and current Disney Channel daughter Euphoria co-star Zendaya as “A Boss”, following their surprise on-screen reunion.
The couple, who played father and daughter together in the hit series KC Undercover ten years ago, reunited for the final season of the HBO drama drama.
Hardison joined the cast as Big Eddy, a character working alongside Zendaya’s Rue at a strip club run by drug lord Alamo.
The reunion was long overdue for the duo, who remained in touch after their Disney years.
Hardison revealed to The Hollywood Reporter that it was Zendaya herself who introduced him Euphoria creator Sam Levinson at a holiday dinner.
He admitted that when he first watched the series, he was “extremely uncomfortable” seeing the intense world it depicted, which was a far cry from their family beginnings.
However, after meeting Levinson and visiting the set, he eventually landed the role of Big Eddy.
Reflecting on how much Zendaya has changed since her teenage years, Hardison noted that although she has matured, her leadership qualities were visible even at 16 years old.
He remembers being impressed that she was an executive producer on their Disney show, and he’s even more struck by how she extended that role into her film career.
“She’s always been that person and she’s always been a boss,” he said, jokingly referring to the award-winning actress as “little big sister” because she’s often the more mature of the two.
The latest episode provided plenty of dramatic fodder for both actors, with Hardison’s character caught up in a violent war on drugs.
He confessed that watching Zendaya’s performance now was a shock compared to their earlier work, admitting that he didn’t know she had such “depth” and felt he had to work hard to keep up with her.
For Hardison, whose career spans more than three decades A different worldthe experience was a full-circle moment that proved his own advice to his fellow actors: as long as you stay in the game, the next big hit is always around the corner.
