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Movies
False Advertising: Challengers (2024)
Pulling a magic trick in marketing
Back in June of 2023, the first trailer for Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers was released. It presented the three main characters of the film — Tashi (Zendaya), Patrick (Josh O’Connor) and Art (Mike Faist) — and threw us, the audience, into the world of tennis and the obvious plot of the film that revolved around the love triangle that develops between the three.
Let’s not forget that it was the first time we glimpsed the iconic Zendaya stare and smirk, in the infamous three-way kissing scene, that stirred some “feelings” around the world.
Constructing a narrative
As the months passed leading up to the film’s release, more and more still images and trailers kept coming out as part of the film’s marketing campaign, solidifying the central plot of the love triangle and putting Zendaya’s Tashi at the center of it all and her “little white boys” chasing after her. The poster for the film shows an extreme closeup of Zendaya’s face.
All the trailers were focused on Tashi (Zendaya) showcasing her tragic injury and subsequent fall from tennis-stardom. Hints of her becoming a successful tennis coach and manager to her husband Art (Mike Faist) are also present throughout the…
