The Sexy Tennis Drama Challengers Somehow Has The Coolest Visual Effects Of 2024

"Challengers" is one of the best films of the year (read our review here), a thrilling, sexy, adult drama about two guys who love each other and one woman who loves tennis. While the marketing played up a threesome scene that never actually happens (the scene only involves some heavy kissing), "Challengers" is still one of the year's biggest surprises with a killer ending. Stars Zendaya, Josh O'Connor, and Mike Faist are all on fire here, Luca Guadagnino's direction is energetic and exciting, and the score by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross is full of absolute bangers. 

Besides all the sexy melodrama, some of the best elements of "Challengers" are the thrilling tennis sequences that turn the sport into a non-stop thrillride, complete with a tennis ball POV that flies back and forth at lightning speed. I watch a lot of movies, and I know how movies are made, so very little in terms of behind-the-scenes material gets me going these days. But I'll freely admit that as I watched some of the tennis sequences in "Challengers," I found myself wondering: how the hell did they do this? It turns out a lot of seamless visual effects work went into creating some of the tennis scenes, and a new behind-the-scenes video showcases the work. Check it out below.

Love it or hate it, you have to admit, it's a new way to see tennis!

I oversaw all VFX on Challengers and thanks to great direction from Luca and amazing artists @ZeroVFX it's unlike any sports movie ever made!

More breakdowns to come. Go watch the movie on Prime!!! pic.twitter.com/eu4lnlnhaD

— Brian Drewes (@BrianVFX) May 23, 2024

In the video above, Brian Drewes, who oversaw the VFX work in the film, highlights the incredible ball POV moment in the film. He also breaks down the work that went into creating the scene, writing: 

"Started with a previs pass, animated to the timing of an actual tennis volley, which was approved by Luca prior to filming ... Filming was overseen by the VFX team including VFX editorial support on set to confirm cut points were working as filming occurred ... Filmed during a 5 hour window with an Arri Alexa LF on a 30' technocrane ... 23 !!! individual shots were stitched together to create the final 24 second shot seen in the film ... Highly detailed LiDar and photogrammetry scans of the tennis court environment were captured to help create the final models. 100+ actors and background extras were also photoscanned to populate the stands of our CG environment ... Full CG takeovers were done to smooth camera motion and correct time of day changes ... Stunt double faces were replaced with a combination of full CG heads and additional photography."

This is all mighty impressive because it looks pretty damn flawless when you see the final scene. It also looks "real," as in — you can't tell so many digital elements were added to the scene. An article in the New York Times also broke down some of the behind-the-scenes techniques that went into the tennis scenes. For instance: 

The crew quickly realized it would be impossible to have real play that precisely matched Justin Kuritzkes's script, especially in repeated takes. Their solution: Remove the rackets, and the ball. The actors held only the racket handle, whooshing the air with professional intensity. The rest was computer generated.

Again: impressive stuff, and a reminder that a lot of work goes into movies, even when they're not big blockbusters loaded with CGI. And that work can be magical and make movies special. Even when you know about all the effort that went into creating these scenes, they remain visually stunning.