Zendaya is an example of a movie star who got their start on the Disney Channel and just keeps on killing it. In her first leading lady film role, she’ll be starring in Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers about a love triangle that’s stretched out for years in the realm of tennis. Because playing the role of a tennis player involved serious tennis training, the 26-year-old committed a rare celebrity move admitting workouts were not her favorite part of role preparation and I give her so much credit for that.
Based on the first trailer of Challengers, we see Zendaya showing no mercy hitting some serious balls out on the tennis court while playing Tashi. As we know the Spider-Man: No Way Home actress is not a tennis player in real life, she had to go through some serious training to look the part of a pro. When asked by Elle what her favorite memory on set was, she gave an answer about her tennis training you would rarely hear celebrities admit.
From challengers, I think the best part – my fans know this about me – I’m not the hugest fan of having to work out. I don’t necessarily look forward to it. But I had to because my character’s supposed to be a tennis pro and clearly I’m not giving tennis pro. Right? Yet. We had an incredible team of people that we got to learn from.
Zendaya’s genuine feelings towards her tennis training were both refreshingly honest and absolutely relatable. Sure, there are fitness buffs out there who make everyone green with envy when you see them get a real thrill from hitting the gym. But not all people feel that way about rigorous training. This type of honesty needs to be heard, so people don’t feel bad for not being able to complete every workout they start with ease. After all, not everyone is an athlete. As long as you initially work through them with the right kind of help similar to what Zendaya had, you’ll feel that workout burn in all the right places.
In a separate Elle interview, it was revealed the former Disney star spent three months working on her tennis footwork, form, and getting her swing accurate in front of a ton of people as if she were a true tennis pro. A hilarious fun fact: she wasn’t even hitting a real ball! She more had to give off the appearance of a tennis player through realistic movements rather than actually worry about scoring points. This allowed the Euphoria actress to give a lot of credit to professional tennis players who have to present good form and compete with others.
Not only did Zendaya have a team of people helping her through her tennis training, but her co-stars Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor had their own way of assistance.
I was with Josh and Mike every day. And they were the reason that I was able to smile and laugh through our workout sessions. It was a good time. I think we all really needed to lean on each other in those moments.
It’s always nice to have methods of support when it comes to first-time training. According to Zendaya and O’Connor, Mike Faist’s tennis training experience was much different than theirs. As in the West Side Story actor looked flawless completing his training. O'Connor described his co-star as “an absolute machine” who loves the gym. So in his case, it was probably much easier for him to train and get in shape for the 2023 movie release. The British actor and the Emmy winner were in agreement that they were thankful for the tennis training aspect of the film to help them get in shape and increase their inner confidence. It was also a plus getting to spend every day together “like summer camp,” as the Dune actress described.
I’m all about Zendaya’s genuine honesty in how she felt about her tennis training for Challengers. Working out like an athlete is not always the most enjoyable experience and I’m glad I’m not alone in those feelings. As the romantic sports drama has been delayed from its original September release date due to the 2023 WGA Writers Strike, you can see all of Zendaya’s hard work pay off in theaters on April 26, 2024.
