The film “Challengers” stirred up a lot of discussions, especially regarding its more intimate scenes, and Zendaya has shared her approach to one of the film’s most talked-about moments.
In the 2024 movie, Zendaya plays Tashi Duncan, a young tennis prodigy caught in a passionate love triangle with fellow tennis players. Her co-stars, O’Connor and Mike Faist, portray Patrick Zweig and Art Donaldson, respectively. The dynamic between the three characters highlights both their competitive nature on the court and their personal entanglements off it.
The film’s buzz largely centers around a three-way kiss scene, which attracted significant attention. However, Zendaya offers a different perspective on the perceived intimacy of the scene.
In an interview with Variety, alongside Nicole Kidman, Zendaya discussed the complexities involved in filming intimate scenes. They both emphasized the need to balance spontaneity with sticking to a predetermined plan during such shoots.
Nicole Kidman shared her insights: “You may be sitting in this chair, and then suddenly the scene is on the floor. You can come in with this plan, but the plan is not going to help you, really. Listening and responding, as we do in life, is the best way to get something special.”
Zendaya followed up by saying: “You can tell if someone’s thinking about what they’re going to say or what they’re going to do with their hand. I’ve caught myself doing that, when you dissociate mid-take. Or you start thinking, ‘Why did I just do that with my eye? That was a really weird choice.'”
She further explained: “I got asked a lot about the three-way kiss scene in [Challengers], and I was like, ‘Really, it’s a four-, five-, six-, seven-, eight-, nine-way kiss,’ because there’s so many people. There’s a camera coming at us at a certain time. I know that when I go from Mike [Faist] to Josh [O’Connor], when the camera comes in, I gotta move back. There’s so many things at play.”
Writer Justin Kuritzkes revealed to Variety that “tennis by its nature, is a very erotic sport… It’s very sexy.” He also mentioned that director Luca Guadagnino believed it was “very important that, in any love triangle, all the corners touch.”
Kuritzkes elaborated, saying, “I quickly realized he meant it literally,” which led to the creation of the steamy scene where both Patrick and Art start by kissing Tashi before turning their attention to each other.