Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist Serve Queer Electric Chemistry for ‘Challengers’ Teaser Photo

Movie QUEER USA

2023-08-02
13:25

Tennis fans are in for some electric queer tension for the sporty and sexy film ‘Challengers.’

On Monday, July 31, Empire released a new teaser image of ‘Challengers’ where lead stars Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist are seen sweaty, shirtless, and smirking at each other. Talk about hot!

EXCLUSIVE 🎾#Challengers director Luca Guadagnino ‘had no knowledge of tennis’, says star Mike Faist: ‘He was more interested in bodies and sweat,’ he tells Empire.

READ MORE: https://t.co/F2MouviGse pic.twitter.com/tIHqcn3Uxd

— Empire Magazine (@empiremagazine) July 31, 2023

In an interview with Empire, Faist talked about director Luca Guadagnino’s approach to the film and said that the director “only had a vague interest in tennis” and had “more interest about bodies and sweat.”

And Zendaya does not seem to have a problem with that as she expressed that Guadagnino is “good at finding sensuality and desire.” The iconic actress explains that there is “so much in just glances.”

Her co-actor O’Connor seems to echo the same sentiment with him saying that the sport “is the sex.” O’Connor also shared that the sporty moments in the film are “sexy “ and that “the film is dealing with the tension before and after. The sex they’re all desperate for is on the court.”

‘Challengers’ follows the story of pro-tennis player Tashi (Zendaya) who has helped to transform her husband, Art (Faist), from a mediocre player into a world-famous Grand Slam winner. She makes him play a “Challenger” event to shake him out of a losing streak. At this event, Art finds himself playing against the burnt-out Patrick (O’Connor), who has a history with them as he happens to be his former best friend and Tashi’s former boyfriend.

The teaser for ‘Challengers’ became a viral hit on the internet due to the implied queer and polyamorous vibe with the three leads. On whether the film is going to be queer, the director hinted at it, saying “It’s me, so…”

Unfortunately, viewers would have to wait for a while until the premiere to confirm their suspicions. Challengers was originally scheduled for a September 2023 release date. However, the film has been postponed to April 2024 due to the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) strike.

Sources: (1) (2)