The "Challengers" cast is a triple grand slam. Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re looking at the three central stars from “Challengers” and why you should be following each of their careers.
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00:00 "You were incredible today."
00:01 "Thank you."
00:02 Welcome to Ms. Mojo.
00:04 And today, we're looking at the three central stars from Challengers
00:07 and why you should be following each of their careers.
00:10 "We went somewhere really beautiful together."
00:12 From A to Zendaya.
00:15 Of this trio, Zendaya is the one who needs no introduction.
00:19 "Please welcome Zendaya."
00:26 Of course, Zendaya has come so far that it's easy to forget where she started.
00:31 The youngest of six siblings, Zendaya was already well-versed in theater and dance
00:35 when her family moved to L.A. where she attended high school.
00:38 Zendaya booked several commercials,
00:40 most prognostically as a backup dancer in a Sears ad featuring Selena Gomez.
00:44 Just as Disney Channel put Gomez on the map,
00:50 Zendaya became an icon to a generation raised on Shake It Up.
00:54 "Good morning!"
00:56 "Ladies and gentlemen, we are here for your commuting entertainment."
01:00 Although she auditioned for Cece Jones, a role that went to Bella Thorne,
01:03 Zendaya was cast as co-lead Rocky Blue,
01:06 launching her into the mainstream as an actress and singer with singles like "Swag It Out."
01:10 Zendaya's star kept rising with Disney Channel productions like Frenemies,
01:19 Zapped, and the series KC Undercover,
01:22 but she reached a new frontier of fame with her first theatrical film, Spider-Man Homecoming.
01:26 "Why are you here? You don't even have detention."
01:28 "Oh, I know, I just like coming here to sketch people in crisis."
01:32 "Phew."
01:36 She played Peter Parker's loner classmate-turned-friend-turned-love-interest Michelle,
01:41 who many correctly predicted would be the MCU's MJ.
01:44 At the time, her casting generated some quote-unquote "controversy" with skin color at the center.
01:49 The discourse quickly became an afterthought,
01:51 as Zendaya turned Michelle into a fan favorite throughout three films.
01:55 "Some suggest that Parker's powers include the male spider's ability to hypnotize females,
02:00 which he used to seduce Jones Watson into his cult of personality."
02:05 "Stop, stop."
02:06 "Yes, my spider lord."
02:08 Zendaya's string of high-profile roles continued with The Greatest Showman,
02:13 Space Jam A New Legacy, and The Dune movies.
02:17 "Maybe I'll show you the way."
02:18 Critics felt she gave her most powerful performance to date on TV,
02:25 winning multiple primetime Emmys for playing Rue Bennett in Euphoria.
02:29 "You wish I was different? So do I!"
02:31 By 2024, Zendaya was among Hollywood's biggest stars,
02:35 leaving her mark in almost every medium and regularly slaying the red carpet.
02:39 "Absolutely. Your most iconic red carpet moments, do you have a couple favorites?"
02:43 "Oh man."
02:44 Yet Challengers was her first theatrical film as the lead.
02:48 While Zendaya was the co-lead in 2021's Malcolm & Marie,
02:51 that drama was a Netflix exclusive.
02:54 "I've never been clean. And I don't plan on getting clean."
02:59 In Luca Guadagnino's Tennis Love Triangle, Zendaya plays Toshi Duncan,
03:04 a rising star poised to join the same ranks as Venus and Serena.
03:08 After a career-ending injury, though, she channels her energy into two male athletes,
03:12 seeking to make one of them the best.
03:15 "I'm taking such good care of the little white boys."
03:17 Just as all eyes are on Toshi, audiences will mainly go to Challengers for Zendaya.
03:23 While Zendaya delivers another commanding performance,
03:26 audiences should be equally enthralled by her co-stars, asking where they've seen them before.
03:31 Josh O'Connor's Hollywood coronation
03:34 Born in Southampton, England, Josh O'Connor started honing his acting skills at age 7,
03:38 playing the Scarecrow in his school's production of The Wizard of Oz.
03:42 O'Connor continued to pursue acting well into high school,
03:44 providing an outlet for him to overcome his dyslexia.
03:47 "Who's one character you've always wanted to play?"
03:50 "Uh, I think probably I would love to play Willy Wonka. But like a dark Willy Wonka.
03:56 I know they've just made a Wonka film with Timothee Chalamet,
03:58 but I would really like to play a sort of darker version of him."
04:01 By his early 20s, the British actor started landing one-off roles on shows like Lewis and Doctor Who.
04:11 He'd receive more prominent guest spots on Peaky Blinders and Ripper Street while balancing work
04:15 in theater and independent films. Hitting the mainstream movie scene,
04:19 O'Connor booked small roles in 2015's Cinderella and Florence Foster Jenkins.
04:23 "What is he playing?"
04:25 Critics noticed his potential as a lead in the LGBTQIA+ romance God's Own Country,
04:32 helping O'Connor score a BAFTA Rising Star Award nomination.
04:38 "You could come here on your own then, to England."
04:40 "Yeah."
04:41 O'Connor went from rising star to certified star as Prince, now King,
04:46 Charles on seasons three and four of The Crown.
04:48 "We have all made sacrifices and suppressed who we are.
04:52 Some portion of our natural selves is always lost."
04:55 "That is a choice."
04:55 Initially, he was reluctant to audition,
04:58 believing there wasn't much to Charles beyond being a quote, "very rich and posh man."
05:02 O'Connor became more intrigued after reading Charles' Dangling Man monologue.
05:07 "I sometimes feel like the main character who he describes as
05:09 existing in a timeless and slightly ridiculous abyss."
05:14 Charles' whole life is building toward becoming king,
05:17 but he can't fulfill his purpose until his mother dies.
05:20 Until then, Charles spends most of his youth being mistreated at school
05:23 and driven away from the woman he loves,
05:25 while receiving little affection from his mother.
05:28 Where season three establishes Charles as an empathetic figure,
05:31 the audience's sympathies shift to Princess Diana in season four,
05:35 as her husband sours into a more controlling, callous character.
05:38 "Tearing up."
05:39 "Who are you referring to?"
05:40 "Camilla."
05:41 "Why would I care about her?"
05:44 "Because I care about her!
05:45 Morning, noon, and night I care about her!
05:50 And you hurt her."
05:53 O'Connor compared Charles' transformation to Walter White.
05:56 Like Breaking Bad, The Crown was an awards darling,
05:59 winning O'Connor the Outstanding Lead Actor in a drama series Emmy
06:02 for his farewell season.
06:03 "Okay, um, thank you so much for this. That's the first line."
06:08 While Dominic West inherited the Charles role moving forward,
06:14 O'Connor's career did not slow down.
06:16 He'd appear as Mr. Elton in the 2020 adaptation of Emma,
06:19 and one half of the star-crossed lovers in a filmed stage production of Romeo and Juliet.
06:24 In Challengers, O'Connor plays Patrick Zweig,
06:26 a fading tennis star who lost his girlfriend, best friend, and drive on the court.
06:31 Through a Challenger event, he may be able to reclaim at least one of the above.
06:36 "But imagine if you could turn Patrick Zweig into a guy who wins a slam."
06:40 O'Connor gives one of his most transformative performances,
06:45 but you're only as good as your opponent.
06:47 "Let's go!"
06:48 Mike Feist, Taking Off Like a Jet
06:51 Like O'Connor, one of Feist's earliest acting gigs was in A Wizard of Oz production,
06:56 playing a member of the Lollipop Guild.
06:58 The Ohio native was encouraged by his adoptive parents to pursue his passion,
07:01 starring in school productions of Grease and Jesus Christ Superstar.
07:04 "You get the power and the glory, forever and ever."
07:11 Before moving to New York, Feist connected with his birth mother,
07:14 learning that he came from a family of pilots.
07:17 Feist later got a pilot license of his own, but the stage remained his dream destination.
07:21 After originating the antagonistic role of Morris DeLancey in the regional production of Newsies,
07:26 "Deep down though, you know, really deep down, he's actually like a really nice guy,
07:31 but you never see it in the show, unfortunately."
07:33 Feist became the Broadway understudy for the lead, Jack Kelly.
07:36 Following a few off-Broadway stints,
07:38 he returned to the Great White Way as Connor Murphy in Dear Evan Hansen.
07:42 "He really took on the extraordinary challenge
07:45 of being a character that the audience could find enigmatic."
07:49 Feist's turn as the troubled Connor earned him a daytime Emmy and Grammy
07:53 in addition to his first Tony nomination.
07:56 Some, including Quentin Tarantino, felt Feist also should have gotten an Oscar nomination
08:00 for his performance as Riff in 2021's West Side Story.
08:04 "Come on, Frank doesn't know his ass from his elbow."
08:07 By this point, Feist had taken on several supporting roles in independent films,
08:11 making his feature debut almost a decade earlier in The Unspeakable Act.
08:15 Working with Steven Spielberg significantly raised his Hollywood profile, however.
08:19 "When you're a jet, you're a jet, all the way from your first cigarette
08:24 to your last iron day. When you're a jet, if the spit hits the fan…"
08:29 Feist had the singing chops and graceful dance steps,
08:32 but he also brought greater depth to the self-destructive leader of the Jets.
08:35 Beyond protecting his gang's territory, Feist's take on Riff feels as if he's
08:40 being erased in America's changing landscape and would much sooner die than surrender.
08:44 "More of your bullshit."
08:45 "You're not talking about shooting, pal. You're the one with the gun."
08:47 "That's right. And who are you? Friend or foe?"
08:50 While Feist continued to work with other high-profile directors like Jeff Nichols in The
08:53 Bike Riders, he didn't abandon his roots. Feist returned to the stage in a West End
08:58 production of Brokeback Mountain. "Slow is the motion like a lone drummer drummin'."
09:06 Acting opposite Lucas Hedges, Feist put a fresh twist on Jack Twist,
09:10 who can never be with the man he loves beyond their secret sanctuary.
09:13 When Josh O'Connor starred in God's Own Country, it earned comparison to a modern
09:18 Brokeback Mountain. It's serendipitous that Feist and O'Connor would star as
09:21 friends-turned-opponents in Challengers. "It's nice to see you lit up about something."
09:25 As Art Donaldson, Feist plays a tennis pro whose comeback match may save his marriage,
09:30 but will further strain a bitter rivalry. "I love you."
09:33 "I know."
09:37 However you read Art and Patrick's relationship, the court finds both at their most intense.
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09:59 A triple grand slam
10:01 As well-crafted as Challengers is, the film wouldn't work without the charisma of its three
10:05 leads. "Come here." "Which one of us?" The trio propel Challengers to the top of the box office
10:13 on its opening weekend, but it's only a pit stop for each of them. In the years to come,
10:17 Zendaya is expected to reprise two of her biggest roles in season three of Euphoria and Dune,
10:22 Messiah. O'Connor is set to star alongside Paul Meskel in the romantic drama The History of Sound.
10:27 After making its debut at Telluride, the bike riders will be coming to commercial
10:31 theaters in June 2024, giving viewers their feist fix. "Yes, please." The real challenge
10:36 is selecting an MVP with all three of these actors currently at the top of their game.
10:41 "Some things are just meant to happen." "Some things are meant to happen."
10:43 Who do you think gave the best performance in Challengers?
10:46 Deliver the first serve in the comments. "That's why you still have that serve." "It works."
10:50 "Yeah, but you're not a tennis player." "But you don't know what tennis is."
10:58 Do you agree with our picks? Check out this other recent clip from Ms. Mojo.
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