Zendaya's “K.C. Undercover” Costars 'Always Knew' She Was 'Special': 'Destined to Do This' (Exclusive)

Even a decade ago, Zendaya’s K.C. Undercover castmates had a feeling she would be a star.

The Disney Channel series, which aired from 2015 to 2018, featured the then-18-year-old actress as K.C. Cooper, a teenage girl recruited as a secret agent by her parents Craig (Kadeem Hardison) and Kira (Tammy Townsend). Kamil McFadden and Trinitee Stokes also starred as K.C.’s brother and sister, Ernie and Judy, while Veronica Dunne portrayed K.C.’s bubbly best friend Marisa.

For K.C. Undercover’s 10th anniversary on Jan. 18, 2025, Townsend, 54, McFadden, 28, and Stokes, 18, looked back on their time filming the action comedy show — and they had nothing but praise for their leading lady, now 28.

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Stokes tells PEOPLE that the cast “always knew” stardom was on the horizon for Zendaya because of her “tenacity” and “goal-oriented nature.”

“She was always so driven, and she always had such bright ideas and such great perspective on the entertainment industry,” Stokes says. “We’re all very proud and excited to see her flourishing like she is.”

Townsend highlights Zendaya’s versatility on the show, saying, “She’s one of those people that is able to do comedy. She’s able to do drama. I think they had a couple episodes where she was dancing, and then she sings.”

Along with headlining the show — her second on Disney Channel after Shake It Up — the actress served as a co-producer. Executive producer Rob Lotterstein and Zendaya took the original concept, created by Corinne Marshall, and “tweaked it around because it was originally for a White family,” recalls Townsend.

Related: Former Disney Channel Stars Sound Off on the Experience: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

“She’s destined to do this,” McFadden says of his on-screen sister. “To see her operate in that producer role as well as being the star, I learned from her, being able to speak up and talk about things that are more nuanced than usual.”

He adds that Zendaya helped the series navigate how to portray a Black family in a comedy.

“There are certain things in a Black family that you may or may not do,” McFadden explains. “Her being able to speak up in terms of that and just optically always looking from the perspective where it's like, ‘All right, can both sides win? We don't want to offend one side or the other.’ … She just balanced it so well.”

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The K.C. Undercover family’s bond extends beyond the show. Townsend and Hardison, 59, stay in touch — and have both had roles in Lena Waithe’s drama series The Chi. McFadden keeps up with his on-screen parents and catches up with Zendaya “when she’s not busy.”

At the Los Angeles premiere of Challengers last April, McFadden, Hardison and the Euphoria actress had a mini cast reunion on the red carpet after she invited them.

“Anytime that I get a call from her or her manager, like, ‘Hey, I got this project. Come out to the premiere,’ I'm always going to show up and support because that is my sister. I love her to life,” says McFadden.

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