17 April 2024 , 19:59
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Zendaya was more relaxed filming action scenes in the bedroom than on the tennis court for her latest smash.
In Challengers, the Dune star plays Tashi, a former tennis prodigy in a love triangle with her husband Art and his rival Patrick, played by Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor respectively.
And the 27-year-old, who is dating her Spider-Man co-star Tom Holland, said: “Tashi is extremely driven. She’s a go-getter and she is totally ruthless. The intimate scenes were so good – I loved it. I felt very lucky to be partnered with those guys.
“And whatever the moment, it always felt like they always had my back and I had theirs. We were so lucky to have a director in Luca Guadagnino who really encouraged us all to collaborate and to bring our own ideas. It was a really exciting creative process.”
But while the romantic scenes came easily for Zendaya, her character’s tennis expertise presented greater difficulty – as she admits she hates exercising. She said: “How did I meet the physical challenges of the role? With great difficulty. I am not one of these people who love to work out. But Tashi is supposed to be a top athlete, so there was no getting around it.
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Mike Faist as Art, Zendaya as Tashi and Josh O'Connor as Patrick in Challengers (© 2023 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc. All Rights Reserved.)“Thankfully, I had an amazing group of people who helped and I learned a lot – about air tennis especially and how to look like I know what I’m doing. We trained for something like six weeks, which was pretty tough. Hopefully, we did a good job and people won’t be too upset. But I’m not about to give up the day job, that’s for sure! Playing tennis was definitely the most challenging part of making Challengers.”
But California-born Zendaya insists Challengers is not just a sports film, saying: “It’s a complicated, sexy and interesting character piece. When I read the script, I loved it. And even now, every time I watch the movie, I question Tashi’s decisions a little more. It’s one of those stories about the choices we make and their consequences. It’s fascinating as everyone will find themselves empathising with a different character. Everyone has their own idea of who the bad guy is.”
*Challengers is in cinemas on Friday, April 26.