Tyler, the Creator and Gwyneth Paltrow to join Timothée Chalamet’s new ping-pong movie
Rapper Tyler, the Creator and Hollywood icon Gwyneth Paltrow are set to join the new Timothée Chalamet-led ping-pong biopic, Marty Supreme.
The news comes as part of a major 12 months for Chalamet following the success of Dune: Part Two. The New Yorker was announced as the leading man in the upcoming flick in July this year, and the movie tells the story of the real-life ping-pong champion Marty Reisman, featuring a fictionalised story of his life.
Although Reisman passed away in 2012, the champion player is still known as ‘The Wizard’ in table tennis circles. Across his long career, between 1946 and 2002, he won 22 major ping-pong titles, and five bronze medals at the World Table Tennis Championships. He also played in the US National Hardbat Championship, which saw him become the oldest player to take home the trophy for a national racket sports competition.
With the plot currently under wraps by A24, it remains to be seen how Chalamet will take on the character of the colourful Reisman and his remarkable journey. It will likely be full of nail-biting tension, though, as it is written by Josh Safdie alongside Ronald Bronstein and produced with Eli Bush, Anthony Katagas, and Chalamet.
The project marks Safdie’s third movie with the A24 production house, following the cult contemporary classics Uncut Gems and Good Time, two films known for their tense stories, acting and camera work.
Chalamet is a prominent fan of the work of the Safdie brothers. After the release of 2019’s Uncut Gems, he penned an essay for Variety championing their unique approach to contemporary cinema, and he’ll now have a chance to team up with half of the duo.
Additionally, Marty Supreme has welcomed two more famous faces to its cast, with it shaping up to be yet another notable name in Chalamet’s oeuvre. This aptly comes after Tyler, the Creator rapped on 2018’s ‘OKRA’: “Tell Tim Chalamet to come get at me”.
Marty Supreme will be a significant moment for Tyler, as it marks his feature film debut. He has experimented with cinema before, with him co-creating and starring in Adult Swim’s Loiter Squad alongside other Odd Future members. He also co-created the adult animated Adult Swim show The Jellies! and the Viceland docuseries Nuts + Bolts.
Chalamét has a busy few months ahead, as he recently wrapped up work on James Mangold’s Bob Dylan biopic, A Complete Unknown. Based on Elijah Wald’s Dylan Goes Electric!, in it Chalamet plays a young Dylan when he took the deeply controversial move to the electric guitar in the mid-1960s. The film will arrive in cinemas in the United States on December 25th, 2024 and in the United Kingdom on January 17th, 2025.
Never Miss A Scene
The Far Out Film Newsletter
All the latest film news from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.