Vulture - Vulture

Challengers

Game, set, ménage à trois.

Courtside Commentary

  1. golden globes 2025
    The Biggest Snubs and Surprises of the 2025 Golden Globe NominationsDune is not doin’ great.
  2. best of 2024
    The Best Movies of 2024There’s still nothing like the simple pleasure of watching movie stars be movie stars.
  3. hi gay
    West Hollywood Halloween Carnaval.
    Twitter Hates Gay Halloween2024’s best pop-culture costumes would kill a puritan.
  4. awards szn
    Awards Season Starts … Now!Gotham Award nominations are out, and Challengers is ahead.
  5. vulture games
    Bonus Cinematrix: Cannes Lions 2024 EditionCan you name a Jon Hamm movie released between 2015-2024?
  6. i told ya
    BREAKING NEWS: Letterboxd Users Like ChallengersJoining the 1 Million Watched Club after 48 days in theaters.
  7. gift guide
    Vulture’s 2024 Summer Pop-Culture Gift GuidePresents? For summer? Groundbreaking.
  8. know your target audience
    Of Course There’s a Challengers Throuple DiscountToo bad the tickets don’t come with a free churro.
  9. essential purchases
    Zendaya’s Challengers ‘I Told Ya’ Shirt Can Be YoursOther auction items include Josh O’Connor’s wig and Mike Faist’s broken racket.
  10. twinks vs. dolls
    Dua Lipa and Her Sonny Angel Doll Are Really Into ChallengersThe SNL host pitted her date against her doll collection, churros and all.
  11. on the record
    Every Time Josh O’Connor Has Brought Up RatatouilleIf you think about it, Linguini is also in a love triangle.
  12. vulture sports
    The Actual Tennis in Challengers Is Kind of a ServeZendaya, Mike Faist, and Josh O’Connor not only get their athletic forms right, they also embody specific tennis archetypes.
  13. vulture sports
    Why Challengers Had That Applebee’s SceneLuca did his research.
  14. theories
    What Happens After Art and Patrick’s Final Shot?Here are our personal theories for what comes next for our favorite hyper-competitive trio.
  15. pulls stool closer
    The Horniest Food in Challengers, Ranked From Least to MostTalk about a snack-rich diet.
  16. vulture recommends
    Before Challengers, Josh O’Connor Served Sex and Swagger in a Masterpiece SeriesOn The Durrells in Corfu, where he spends much of his time banging away on a typewriter and screaming.
  17. throuples
    Variety, The New York Party - Arrivals
    Stop Looking for the Challengers/Past Lives ThirdScreenwriter Justin Kuritzkes says Challengers is more like tennis fanfic.
  18. u.s. open
    Challengers Scores Luca Guadagnino His Biggest Box Office Opening YetThe tennis film came in first at the box office with $15.2 million.
  19. doubles
    Tom Holland Is Seeing Challengers This Weekend TooLet’s not assume it’s just because his girlfriend is in it…there are plenty of reasons he’d want to go!
  20. i told ya
    Challengers Has the Box Office Yelling ‘Come On!’People are showing up to watch some good tennis.
  21. now serving?
    Is Zendaya the Leading Lady We’ve Been Looking for?Two critics face off about the actor’s Challengers performance and debate whether she knows how to serve onscreen as well as on the red carpet.
  22. let’s go down to the tennis court
    Challengers Reminded Serena Williams of Roger FedererWhat? He’s a wife guy like Art.
  23. boarding school bros
    Go See Challengers With Your Secretly Rich FriendsYou live in Brooklyn and probably know a Patrick Zweig type.
  24. court coverage
    The 13 Best Tennis Scenes in MoviesYou can learn a lot about a character from how they use a racquet.
  25. party report
    About That Spider-Man Reference in ChallengersDid you catch that Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse reference in Challengers?
  26. i can clean him
    Let Josh O’Connor Be Extremely Filthy in EverythingIf cleanliness is godliness, the Challengers star’s dirtiness is perfectly profane.
  27. close read
    There Are Actually Two Almost-Threesomes in ChallengersOne’s in a hotel room and the other’s on the tennis court.
  28. endings
    A Tennis Dummy’s Guide to the Ending of ChallengersSo, uh, who won that last match?
  29. vulture games
    Vulture Cinematrix: Challengers EditionCan you name a Zendaya movie with a one-word title?
  30. song of the summer
    The Challengers Score Should Be Played at the ClubThe movie feels like when your friend tries to say something on a dance floor. Does it matter what they said? No, we’re just out here dancing.
  31. a bad idea worth considering
    The Guys in Challengers Should Have Switched NamesMike Faist is clearly a Patrick Zweig, while Josh O’Connor is a total Art Donaldson.
  32. catchphrases
    BAFTA Hosts Los Angeles Special Screening Of "Challengers"
    New ‘Live, Laugh, Love’ Just Dropped“People, kiss! Do not make war,†Challengers director Luca Guadagnino coins.
  33. party report
    You May Recognize the Challengers Screenwriter From His YouTube DaysBut no, he wouldn’t sell his potions to athletes today.
  34. party report
    That’s Zendaya’s Assistant Playing an Umpire in ChallengersDarnell Appling says director Luca Guadagnino felt the “strong spirit of truth and justice†in him.
  35. performance review
    The Coiled Ferocity of ZendayaChallengers is the ultimate example to date of what has become a distinctively Zendaya screen energy.
  36. doubles
    Zendaya Asks Fellow Tennis Filmmaker Serena Williams for Life AdviceThe pair bonded over their shared unique experience of beginning their careers as children.
  37. future cinematrix category
    Going Down the ‘Spider-Man to Tennis Pipeline’Kirsten Dunst, Emma Stone, Zendaya. Three Spider-love interests, three tennis movies.
  38. trailer mix
    Zendaya Is Making Tennis Sexy AgainIn Luca Guadagnino’s upcoming romantic drama, Challengers.
  39. see you… soon?
    Movies, TV Shows, and Productions Affected by the SAG-AFTRA StrikeRelease dates are still changing, including for Deadpool 3, Thunderbolts, and Captain America: Brave New World.
  40. vulture recommends
    The 1979 Movie ‘Players’ Was a Disaster — But the Tennis Is GreatRevisiting the (hard-to-find) flop that influenced future tennis movies nonetheless.
  41. beef
    Zendaya Acknowledges Law Roach’s Only FlopA Disney-era look, of course.
  42. see you in court
    Zendaya Will Play a Married Tennis Coach in Luca Guadagnino’s ChallengersMike Faist and Josh O’Connor are in talks to join her in the romantic drama.