Justin Kuritzkes hacked his way into the public consciousness with a god-tier viral YouTube video named Potion Seller which, if you haven’t seen it already then put this down and watch it now. He expanded his repertoire of dramatic writing and performance with the play, The Sensuality Party, and his 2019 novel, ‘Famous People’, offered an ironic commentary on the inner life of a pop sensation. Challengers is Kuritzkes’ first feature screenplay to make it to the screen, care of director Luca Guadagnino, and he’s also adapted William Burroughs’ ‘Queer’ which Guadagnino has also directed and we may see some time later in 2024.
LWLies: How did you come upon writing a film set in the world of professional tennis?
In the summer of 2018, I happened to turn on the US Open during the final between Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka. At a pivotal moment in the match, there was a very controversial call from the Umpire where he accused Serena Williams of receiving had to talk about something? What if it was something that went beyond winning and losing? Beyond tennis? How could you communicate the tension of that situation using the tools of film?