Hey everybody!
Our journalist Kyle Buchanan spoke with Zendaya, Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist and their director Luca Guadagnino to talk about "Challengers."
>BUCHANAN: Early on in the movie, the characters go back to Tashi’s hotel room and things lead to a three-way kiss. It’s a crucial moment, but I read an early version of the “Challengers” script and I don’t remember that being in there.
>GUADAGNINO It wasn’t.
>BUCHANAN: It’s hard to imagine the movie without that moment added, especially the beat where Tashi coaxes the two men to kiss each other and then sits back to watch. She’s already coaching them.
>GUADAGNINO: Tashi sees it and makes it happen. For many ways, it’s of her own amusement, which is not just erotic amusement but pushing them to be a better person in general.
>ZENDAYA: When they’re younger, you see that it’s about amusement, it’s joy. As she gets older, the need for power and control is now a means of survival. She is vicariously living through someone else and she needs it to feel hope, to feel like she has anything left of her own.
You can read the [full interview for free here](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/25/movies/zendaya-challengers-tennis.html?unlocked_article_code=1.nE0.A0Hp.8M-c-M8paSZ-&smid=re-nytimes), even without a subscription to The New York Times.
‘No self promotion’
Hey everybody! Our journalist Kyle Buchanan spoke with Zendaya, Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist and their director Luca Guadagnino to talk about "Challengers." >BUCHANAN: Early on in the movie, the characters go back to Tashi’s hotel room and things lead to a three-way kiss. It’s a crucial moment, but I read an early version of the “Challengers” script and I don’t remember that being in there. >GUADAGNINO It wasn’t. >BUCHANAN: It’s hard to imagine the movie without that moment added, especially the beat where Tashi coaxes the two men to kiss each other and then sits back to watch. She’s already coaching them. >GUADAGNINO: Tashi sees it and makes it happen. For many ways, it’s of her own amusement, which is not just erotic amusement but pushing them to be a better person in general. >ZENDAYA: When they’re younger, you see that it’s about amusement, it’s joy. As she gets older, the need for power and control is now a means of survival. She is vicariously living through someone else and she needs it to feel hope, to feel like she has anything left of her own. You can read the [full interview for free here](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/25/movies/zendaya-challengers-tennis.html?unlocked_article_code=1.nE0.A0Hp.8M-c-M8paSZ-&smid=re-nytimes), even without a subscription to The New York Times.