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Zendaya is making her way from the sands of Arrakis to the tennis courts of today through her new movie, Challengers. The steamy sports drama has yet to hit theaters, but both pundits and general fans are already talking about the film and its leading lady’s performance. What a number of people have particularly pointed out is the tennis-playing prowess she shows off in the production. Iconic athlete Serena Williams actually had the chance to screen the flick and spoke to Z about her skills. And, as it turns out, Williams admitted that she caught a certain secret that some moviegoers might miss.
To say that Serena Williams is one of the most esteemed athletes to ever pick up a tennis racket would be a massive understatement. She earned numerous accolades over the course of her illustrious career, even becoming the only player to ever notch a Career Grand Slam (wins in four major tournaments in one year) in singles and doubles. So she knows her way around the court and has a keen understanding of the mechanics of her sport. With that, Zendaya explained that after Williams saw her latest film, she pointed out one aspect of her playing scenes that involved a bit of movie magic:
She was like, ‘I know there definitely weren’t real [tennis] balls.’ She knows. She’s the best of the best.
The comments that the A-lister shared with ET, of course, refer to the fact that the balls were added to the shots later with the help of CGI. Such a method is surely helpful for crafting sequences for a movie like this one. Considering the quickness of such sequences (and the various other elements going on), it could definitely be easy for the common moviegoer to be unaware of the effect. However, on that front, it would certainly be hard to fool a person who’s spent much of their life playing the game. So the notion of one of the famous Williams sisters spotting it doesn’t shock me at all.
Both of the Williams siblings actually had the chance to check out Challengers, with Venus even attending the premiere in Los Angeles this past week. Zendaya said that she hadn’t spoken to the older sibling since the screening, though she’s keeping her “fingers crossed” that she enjoyed it. As for Serena, she apparently gave the actress, who had to train with experts for her role, some sweet praise. The Spider-Man alum explained:
She did say that it was great considering that I had never, never touched a tennis ball before.
Directed by Call Me by Your Name’s Luca Guadagnino, Challengers sees Zendaya play the role of a tennis coach (and former prodigy of the sport), who’s attempting to stir her star husband out of a slump. Her efforts to do so become complicated, though, when her hubby must face off with a skilled opponent, who also happens to be her old flame and his ex-best friend. The movie has received strong reviews thus far, with many hailing it as a “blisteringly sexy” piece of work. While Z hated working out for the role, I’d say that her efforts more than paid off.
I mean, yes, the movie is getting great buzz and that could possibly help during its opening next week. However, it has to be particularly gratifying for the star – who also produced the drama – to get kudos from a legend like Serena Williams. Honestly, I love that the former player shouted out the movie star – and humorously poked fun at the absence of the tennis balls.
See if you can differentiate the real balls from the fake ones when Challengers opens in theaters on April 26 as part of the 2024 movie schedule.