Zendaya and Tom Holland ‘Pregnancy’ Photo Goes Viral Online, but It’s Another AI-Generated Hoax Yet Again

A photo appearing to show Zendaya and Tom Holland announcing a pregnancy has spread widely across social media, but the image is fabricated, the latest in a string of AI-generated hoaxes targeting the Hollywood couple.

The picture shows Zendaya holding what appears to be a positive pregnancy test, with Holland standing beside her holding ultrasound images. Both are pictured smiling and looking at each other in the image, which circulated widely on Instagram after being posted by a fan account called Life Is Fresco with the caption, “The legacy continues beyond the multiverse,” a reference to Holland’s role as Spider-Man.

Fans quickly spotted the inconsistencies

Despite the image’s realistic appearance, several viewers picked up on visual clues suggesting it was artificially generated rather than an authentic photograph. Commenters pointed specifically to an apparent height discrepancy between the two actors as one of the clearest giveaways.

“Since when is tom taller than Zendaya,” one commenter wrote. Another user echoed the skepticism, writing, “Two reasons this is ai, one, Tom is shorter than her, two…yeah. Thats it.” A third commenter played along with the joke embedded in the fan page’s caption, writing simply, “Baby spider is coming.”

There has been no pregnancy announcement from either Zendaya or Holland, and representatives for the couple have not issued any statement addressing the image.

Part of a recurring pattern of AI-generated hoaxes

This is far from the first time Zendaya and Holland have found themselves at the center of fabricated pregnancy claims fueled by artificial intelligence. In early August, a separate AI-altered image circulated widely across X, Instagram and TikTok, showing Zendaya walking through what appeared to be a London park with a visible baby bump under a cropped sweater. That image was later traced back to an authentic paparazzi photograph taken in London in 2023, in which Zendaya’s stomach was flat; the viral version had been digitally manipulated to add the appearance of a pregnancy.

A source close to the couple described the broader phenomenon to RadarOnline at the time, characterizing the volume of fabricated content as its own kind of alternate reality built entirely around the pair. “There is a whole parallel universe of fake ‘moments’ being created for Tom and Zendaya,” the source said. “It’s reached a point where people think they’ve seen their wedding, their pregnancy, their entire future, and it’s all generated on a screen.”

The pregnancy hoaxes have followed a similar wave of AI-generated wedding images that spread earlier this year, showing Zendaya in a corset-style gown and Holland popping champagne in a tuxedo at what appeared to be a private ceremony. Those images were also confirmed to be fake, though their realism fooled a wide swath of social media users, including, according to Holland, members of his own family. He has previously joked that his grandmother saw the fabricated wedding photos and believed she had simply not been invited to the event.

Zendaya has addressed the pattern of fake content directly

Zendaya has spoken publicly on multiple occasions about being targeted by fabricated stories and images throughout her career, a pattern that predates the current wave of AI-generated content. Following an earlier round of pregnancy rumors sparked by a fake TikTok video years ago, Zendaya wrote on her Instagram Story at the time, “See now, this is why I stay off Twitter… Just making stuff up for no reason… weekly.”

More recently, when addressing the fake AI-generated wedding photos that circulated earlier this year, Zendaya acknowledged how convincing the fabricated content had become for many viewers. “Many people have been fooled by them,” she said.

A broader trend affecting public figures

The recurring hoaxes involving Zendaya and Holland reflect a wider trend that has accelerated as AI image-generation tools have become more accessible and increasingly difficult to distinguish from authentic photographs. Media literacy resources addressing the phenomenon have specifically flagged the Zendaya pregnancy rumor as a case study in how quickly search-driven speculation can spread online, noting that terms like “Zendaya pregnant” function as high-value search queries that incentivize the continued creation of fabricated content regardless of its accuracy.

Guidance aimed at helping people, including younger audiences, identify manipulated images has pointed to several common warning signs: distorted or unnatural hand and finger shapes, jewelry that appears to blend unnaturally into skin, and backgrounds with a smudged or inconsistent texture rather than the natural blur produced by an actual camera lens. Experts have also generally advised treating celebrity news claims with skepticism unless they are confirmed by established outlets or the public figures themselves.

No confirmation from the couple

As of this writing, neither Zendaya nor Holland has issued any public statement responding to the latest viral image. The two actors, who began dating in 2017 after meeting on the set of “Spider-Man: Homecoming” and have continued working together on subsequent projects in the franchise, have generally maintained a private personal life despite intense public interest in their relationship.

For now, the viral photo remains what outlets covering the story have consistently described it as: a fan-made, AI-generated depiction of a moment that has not actually occurred, rather than any genuine confirmation of a pregnancy. Given the recurring nature of similar hoaxes throughout the year, it remains likely that further fabricated content involving the couple could continue to circulate online in the coming months, regardless of whether any real personal announcement is ever made.