Summary
- Challengers
is not based on a true story, according to writer Justin Kuritzkes. - Kuritzkes discussed in an interview how the characters were fictional, but the story was based on real events and stories in the world of tennis.
- Kuritzkes cites a specific match in the U.S. Open that inspired
Challengers.
Zendaya’s latest movie Challengers left many fans wondering if the film had some real life inspiration as its masterful story unfolded. Challengers chronicles the story of Tashi Duncan (Zendaya), a tennis champion who becomes a coach after a career-ending injury. While assisting her husband Art Donaldson (Mike Faist) out of his ongoing losing streak, the couple are confronted with a face from the past in the form of Tashi’s former lover and Art’s former best friend Patrick Zweig (Josh O’Connor), heating up their upcoming match and reigniting old feelings.
The film was directed by Luca Guadagnino and written by Justin Kuritzkes. The film was originally set to premiere in 2023, but was stalled due to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, premiering instead in 2024 overseas to critical acclaim. Challengers received a 96% Rotten Tomatoes critic score, beating Zendaya’s previously highest scoring film, Dune 2, which received a 93% Rotten Tomatoes score according to Screen Rant.
Where To Watch Challengers: Showtimes & Streaming Status
Zendaya returns to the big screen with a highly anticipated movie, and this is where to watch Challengers with theater showtimes and streaming info.
Challengers Is Not Based On A True Story Or A Real Tashi Duncan
Kuritzkes confirmed this in a RadioTimes.com interview
While many fans have speculated that Zendaya’s movie Challengers is based on a true story, the film is an original idea that was only inspired by real events. Kuritzkes discussed this during his RadioTimes interview, stating how the characters themselves were completely fictional. However, he also stated that he was inspired by many real figures and events in the world of tennis as well as many sources who discuss that world, including Andre Agassi’s book Open. Alongside of this, Zendaya also tried to add further realism to the film, training for three months with a former tennis pro.
Challengers’ Script Was Inspired By A Real Tennis Match
While Challengers’s box office breaking story was not based on a specific set of people or events, Kuritzkes was inspired by a real life tennis match, adding a layer of reality to the fictional story. Kuritzkes was watching the 2018 U.S. Open final between Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams. During the match, Williams was penalized for receiving coaching from the sidelines, which was not a well known rule to Kuritzkes. Despite Williams’ arguments, the penalty stood and Kuritzkes was struck by the cinematic potential of the situation.
Kuritzkes researched further, looking into stories and sources such as Open and focusing the film’s narrative on the idea of being a professional in a sport that the person no longer loves. This angle adds quite a bit more to Challengers that other tennis movies or sports movies at large do not always consider as well as how to handle a devastating loss of purpose after working for years to achieve fame. Challengers looks not only into that question, but also examines how far someone would go to keep what power they have left on and off the court.
Challengers
is, at the time of writing, set for theatrical release in the U.S. and Canada on April 26th, 2024.