The first trailer for Zendaya’s new film, Challengers, is out now…. and it is breaking the internet!
Directed by Luca Guadagnino, the movie follows the story of tennis prodigy Tashi Duncan (portrayed by Zendaya) who finds herself in a love triangle with two best friends, Art (portrayed by West Side Story’s Mike Faist) and Patrick (portrayed by The Crown’s Josh O’Connor). They all have a good time together as teenagers but then Tashi’s career is cut short due to injury. Fast forward a few years and Tashi is married to Art and the trio cross paths once again on court.
According to Guadagnino, the story is about “f***ed up people” as he so eloquently put it at a 2022 press call for his last film, Bones and All. But the official logline is a little more explanatory, with the film about “three players who knew each other when they were teenagers as they compete in a tennis tournament to be the world-famous grand slam winner and reignite old rivalries on and off the court.”
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The 2 minute and 28 second trailer is set to a remixed version of Rihanna’s “S&M” and teases one of Zendaya’s most sensual and thrilling roles yet. At one point, her character is sitting on a bed in between her two love interests, kissing each of them. (And if you take just a moment to scroll through Twitter, you’ll see just how wild the reactions are!)
In a 2022 interview with Variety, Guadagnino revealed that the cast had trained with pro tennis coach Brad Gilbert for three months on set and although Zendaya had a body double for her on court scenes, the final cut is all her!
The film is due out in US theatres September 15, and October 5 in Australia.
Watch the Challengers trailer now:
(Feature Image Credit: Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures)
