Zendaya shares first poster of her upcoming sports drama Challengers, which features tennis, romantic angst, and drama in potent doses.

Zendaya has evolved like a fine wine over the years. From her humble beginning in Shake it Off and Spiderman: Homecoming, to leading an HBO show like Euphoria and film franchises like Dune, she has come a long way. It is expected of her to make the way last longer for her. However, the model cum actress is set to star in a sports drama next, ensuring her constant exploration of diverse roles.

Challengers is going to be directed by Call Me By Your Name and Suspiria fame Luca Guadagnino. The film’s screenplay was written by novelist and playwright Justin Kuritzkes. It is pegged for a summer release, dropping on April 26, 2024. Thankfully, Zendaya has offered a breath of reprieve for her fans, by posting the film’s first poster as a New Year treat.

Challengers stars Netflix’s The Crown’s Josh O’Connor and West Side Story star Mike Faist along with Zendaya in the leading roles of Art, Patrick, and Tashi respectively. The film dropped its trailer as early as June 23, 2023, and had originally been slated for a September 2023 release, however, the SAG-AFTRA strikes happened and the date got postponed to 2024.

Also read: Challengers’ trailer is OUT: Zendaya gets caught in a love triangle on-and-off a tennis court 

The tennis drama is not just another run-of-the-mill sports film, it has romance and angst at its crux. The trailer offers a brief, exhilarating ride through the film’s story that follows a young, highly talented and passionate tennis player Tashi, who has taken the sports world by storm. Along with all the fame comes admirers, chiefly in the form of fellow sub-par players Art and Patrick, teenage best friends.

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The trailer does not reveal how or why she makes her choice, but after the three have fooled around together for a while, comes a day when Tashi has a bad leg injury and is forced to give up her glorious status for a less glamorous position of coach, viewers see her married to Art.

Also read: Zendaya’s look for Paris Fashion Week draws a comment from Instagram itself; here’s what happened 

Still fierce and determined in her pursuit of excellence, Tashi attempts to build up her husband for championships. Till one fine day, when Art is forced to compete against his former best friend Patrick at a Challenger event, and must come face to face with the competition, both on and off court.