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Challengers

Game, set, ménage à trois.

Courtside Commentary

  1. 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.
    By Fran Hoepfner
  2. golden globes 2025
    The Biggest Snubs and Surprises of the 2025 Golden Globe NominationsDune is not doin’ great.
    By Nate Jones and Jen Chaney
  3. best of 2024
    The Best Movies of 2024There’s still nothing like the simple pleasure of watching movie stars be movie stars.
    By Bilge Ebiri and Alison Willmore
  4. hi gay
    West Hollywood Halloween Carnaval.
    Twitter Hates Gay Halloween2024’s best pop-culture costumes would kill a puritan.
    By Bethy Squires
  5. awards szn
    Awards Season Starts … Now!Gotham Award nominations are out, and Challengers is ahead.
    By Jason P. Frank
  6. vulture games
    Bonus Cinematrix: Cannes Lions 2024 EditionCan you name a Jon Hamm movie released between 2015-2024?
    By Joe Reid
  7. i told ya
    BREAKING NEWS: Letterboxd Users Like ChallengersJoining the 1 Million Watched Club after 48 days in theaters.
    By Bethy Squires
  8. gift guide
    Vulture’s 2024 Summer Pop-Culture Gift GuidePresents? For summer? Groundbreaking.
    By Vulture Staff
  9. know your target audience
    Of Course There’s a Challengers Throuple DiscountToo bad the tickets don’t come with a free churro.
    By Jennifer Zhan
  10. 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.
    By Alejandra Gularte
  11. 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.
    By Tom Smyth
  12. on the record
    Every Time Josh O’Connor Has Brought Up RatatouilleIf you think about it, Linguini is also in a love triangle.
    By Kate Lindsay
  13. 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.
    By Joe Reid
  14. vulture sports
    Why Challengers Had That Applebee’s SceneLuca did his research.
    By Rebecca Alter
  15. 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.
    By Vulture Staff
  16. pulls stool closer
    The Horniest Food in Challengers, Ranked From Least to MostTalk about a snack-rich diet.
    By Fran Hoepfner
  17. 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.
    By Marah Eakin
  18. throuples
    Variety, The New York Party - Arrivals
    Stop Looking for the Challengers/Past Lives ThirdScreenwriter Justin Kuritzkes says Challengers is more like tennis fanfic.
    By Bethy Squires
  19. 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.
    By Tom Smyth
  20. 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!
    By Tom Smyth
  21. i told ya
    Challengers Has the Box Office Yelling ‘Come On!’People are showing up to watch some good tennis.
    By Alejandra Gularte
  22. 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.
    By Madeline Leung Coleman
  23. let’s go down to the tennis court
    Challengers Reminded Serena Williams of Roger FedererWhat? He’s a wife guy like Art.
    By Jason P. Frank
  24. boarding school bros
    Go See Challengers With Your Secretly Rich FriendsYou live in Brooklyn and probably know a Patrick Zweig type.
    By Zach Schiffman
  25. court coverage
    The 13 Best Tennis Scenes in MoviesYou can learn a lot about a character from how they use a racquet.
    By Joe Reid
  26. party report
    About That Spider-Man Reference in ChallengersDid you catch that Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse reference in Challengers?
    By Alejandra Gularte
  27. i can clean him
    Let Josh O’Connor Be Extremely Filthy in EverythingIf cleanliness is godliness, the Challengers star’s dirtiness is perfectly profane.
    By Rachel Handler
  28. close read
    There Are Actually Two Almost-Threesomes in ChallengersOne’s in a hotel room and the other’s on the tennis court.
    By Alison Willmore
  29. endings
    A Tennis Dummy’s Guide to the Ending of ChallengersSo, uh, who won that last match?
    By Joe Reid
  30. vulture games
    Vulture Cinematrix: Challengers EditionCan you name a Zendaya movie with a one-word title?
    By Joe Reid
  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.
    By Nate Jones
  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.
    By Zoe Guy
  33. party report
    You May Recognize the Challengers Screenwriter From His YouTube DaysBut no, he wouldn’t sell his potions to athletes today.
    By Alejandra Gularte
  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.
    By Alejandra Gularte
  35. performance review
    The Coiled Ferocity of ZendayaChallengers is the ultimate example to date of what has become a distinctively Zendaya screen energy.
    By Matt Zoller Seitz
  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.
    By Tom Smyth
  37. future cinematrix category
    Going Down the ‘Spider-Man to Tennis Pipeline’Kirsten Dunst, Emma Stone, Zendaya. Three Spider-love interests, three tennis movies.
    By Bethy Squires
  38. trailer mix
    Zendaya Is Making Tennis Sexy AgainIn Luca Guadagnino’s upcoming romantic drama, Challengers.
    By Zoe Guy
  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.
    By Bella Arnold
  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.
    By Eric Vilas-Boas
  41. beef
    Zendaya Acknowledges Law Roach’s Only FlopA Disney-era look, of course.
    By Zoe Guy
  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.
    By Jennifer Zhan