This tennis court serves up some seriously sexy vibes in ‘Challengers’
The Wedgewood Club in Bedford has a starring role in the love-triangle drama
BEDFORD — If you saw the new film “Challengers” last week, you know that it is not a story about a sexy tennis love triangle, despite trailers that suggested otherwise.
In reality, the movie is about a sexy tennis love square — a rectangle, actually — involving characters played by Zendaya, Josh O’Connor, Mike Faist . . . and one specific tennis court in Bedford, Massachusetts.
The Luca Guadagnino-directed film — which was made in Massachusetts — is about a woman who watches two men simultaneously battle for her attention and their tennis careers. The narrative, which spans years, is framed around one fateful match. A fight for everything on post-tension concrete.
The tennis court hosts long glances, sweat dripping off taut bodies, tension that turns into sexual tension with the promise of kissing (maybe), and so many serves.
It’s where characters clash. It’s where frustrated men grunt and throw their rackets. It is where Zendaya — who plays the seductive and shrewd tennis star-turned-manager Tashi — stares down her suitors and challenges them to win her hand.
The climax happens right there, at the fictional match that’s supposed to be taking place in New Rochelle, N.Y. In reality, it’s the Wedgewood Club, a swim and tennis club off Page Road.
Two years after the movie was filmed, a visit to the court confirms that it is no less sexy.
When the Globe arrived on the scene, the property in Bedford was quiet, but the court was giving vibes. The essence of the match between two athletic and determined men, with Zendaya between them, was still in the air. Palpable energy.
Dave Robertson, 81, a Wedgewood member, was alone on the court hitting balls, seemingly unaware of where he stood, but engrossed in his own game. Something guided him. After he finished his practice, he was informed that he had been playing on the world’s sexiest tennis court.
He did not look surprised. “I know I was missing something in my life. Now I know what it is,” he said.
Brenda Kenahan feels it in the air on a daily basis. She is Wedgewood’s club administrator and was co-president of Wedgewood’s board during filming in 2022. She explains that before that fateful spring filming, a location scout for “Challengers” stopped by. Then they stopped by again. It became clear that Wedgewood was the court they were looking for. It was the sexy court director Guadagnino wanted, and he knows what works. His last two movies were the sexy cannibal love story “Bones and All,” and the sexy coming-of-age story “Call Me by Your Name,” both starring Timothée Chalamet.
The location was pretty much ready for filming, Kenahan said, but some changes had to be made. The crew covered a center court and placed a tent over it. Then they added branding for the fake match and put in riser stands where Zendaya’s character and spectators could watch.
But that wasn’t all. Crews wound up building a sauna room on the Wedgewood property for a memorable scene where O’Connor and Faist have flirtatious competitive banter in towels. They also used club space to make a pro shop, where O’Connor eats part of a breakfast sandwich. Sexily.
Kenahan said she watched some of the filming with her then co-president, Renee Bertos. They stood not far from the court with the location manager.
“I think the first thing that we saw filmed was Josh O’Connor going ‘Let’s go!’ over and over and over and over,” she said. “I was here once when Zendaya was here. She walked by me and I pet her dog, but I didn’t talk to her. We did meet Josh, who’s my favorite.”
Asked whether locals stopped by to try to get a glimpse of filming in May 2022, Kenahan said no — because it was a secretive shoot, and Wedgewood’s space is hard to see from the road. Also, the TV show “Kevin Can F**k Himself ” was filming in another part of Bedford, so people didn’t know what famous people were being sexy and where.
Worth mentioning: When the Globe began investigating the location of the now infamous “Challengers” tennis court, we were told it was at Wheaton College in Norton. We drove there and were escorted to the courts by Alan Wickström, the director of athletic communications.
With great pride he said, “This is it!” He explained how the complex was used in the film, how seating was built around it, etc.
And it did look like the infamous court — but something felt off.
After more discussion, the mistake was clear. The Wheaton court stood in for Stanford University in the film. That’s where one character suffers a terrible injury — perhaps the least sexy moment in the movie.
Sorry to Wheaton. It was a court in the film, but not the court.
Representatives for the film then explained the real court was in Bedford. Only Wedgewood could claim that honor.
Wedgewood’s Kenahan and Bertos — who both have kids who were extras in the movie — were able to see the film for the first time last week, a few days before its opening.
“Renee and I — I think we talked about it for like an hour yesterday morning, like a book club wrap-up,” she said. “It was really cool to see all the pieces come together. And so much of it is just our club.”
Kenahan said director Guadagnino made everything look gorgeous.
“He had a vision, and in my opinion, it is a very visually beautiful film,” she said. “Somebody said ‘Oh, he doesn’t know how to film tennis. And after seeing the movie I was like, yeah . . . because he wasn’t filming tennis. Ninety percent of the dialogue is about tennis. There’s not a lot of conversations that weren’t about tennis. But the movie is not about tennis!”
It’s about a love rectangle in the shape of a court.
Kenahan gets to look at a piece of it every day.
“It was a great opportunity for us and for the club,” she said. “We’re a member-owned club. We don’t have a lot of working capital, we just sort of have everyone’s dues. And so having a little nest egg if something horrible happens with the pool or something . . . that is really great to have.”
Robertson, the Wedgewood member, said he did plan to see “Challengers,” but not opening weekend.