Sean Baker is a front-runner for the best original screenplay for his work on Anora, but this category is filled with many pleasant surprises. The list of contenders also includes A Real Pain (Jesse Eisenberg), Challengers (Justin Kuritzkes), Civil War (Alex Garland), and My Old A— (Megan Park).
Several blockbusters made it to the best adapted screenplay field, including Wicked and Dune: Part 2. They’ll face tough competition in the Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown, the crime comedy Hit Man, and the historical drama Nickel Boys.
As for the television field, Fallout, Mr. And Mrs. Smith, and Shōgun are leading the way with three nominations each. They’re nominated for best drama series, along with The Boys and The Diplomat. Abbot Elementary, The Bear, Hacks, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and What We Do in the Shadows are vying for the best comedy series prize.
The 2025 WGA Awards winners will be announced on February 15 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.
Original Screenplay
Adapted Screenplay
Documentary
Drama Series
Comedy Series
New Series
Limited Series
TV & Streaming Motion Pictures
Animation
Episodic Drama
Episodic Comedy
Comedy/Variety Series – Talk or Sketch
Comedy/Variety Specials
Quiz and audience participation
Daytime drama
Children’s episodic, long form, and specials
Challengers centers on a former tennis protégé Tashi Duncan who turns to coaching after suffering a career-ending injury, helping her husband Art (Mike Faist) rise to prominence and become a Grand Slam champion. They must face the ghosts of their past during a low-level Challenger event, where Art finds himself across the net from his former BFF and Tashi’s ex Patrick (Josh O’Connor).
Challengers topped the box office with $15 million grossed domestically, during a particularly slow week in North America. It also earned $10 million overseas.
These numbers are pretty impressive considering it’s an original film with an R-rating, and its star and producer Zendaya is hoping its success will inspire studios to give more original titles a wide release.
“We need to make more movies like this. It’s kind of scary because this is an original screenplay and those can be difficult to get people out to see. I hope that we can continue to have more variety (in Hollywood) and get people engaged with different kinds of films,” she told US Today.
Challengers centers on a former tennis player Tashi (Zendaya), who turned to caching after a career-ending injury. She used her skills to transform her husband Art (Mike Faist) into a world-famous grand slam champion, but they’re forced to deal with the ghosts of their pasts once he finds himself in the middle of a career slump.
“To jolt him out of his recent losing streak, she makes him play a “Challenger” event – close to the lowest level of pro tournament – where he finds himself standing across the net from his former best friend and Tashi’s former boyfriend (Josh O’Connor),” reads MGM’s official logline.
Challengers hails from the acclaimed director Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name), who co-wrote the script alongside Justin Kuritzkes. This creative duo also joined forces for the upcoming adaptation of William S. Burroughs’ short novel Queer starring Daniel Craig.
Challengers was supposed to serve as the opening film at last year’s Venice Film Festival before being hit by several major delays in the face of dual strikes in Hollywood. It’s now set to arrive in theatres on April 26.
Challengers follows a former tennis prodigy Tashi Duncan (Zendaya), who turned to coaching after experiencing a career-ending injury. She helped her husband Art (Mike Faist) become a Grand Slam champion, but they must face their biggest challenge yet when he’s set to face his former best friend and Tashi’s ex Patrick (Josh O’Connor) at a challenger event.
2024 is shaping up to be somewhat of a comeback year for Zendaya, and Challengers isn’t the only film she has on the way. She’ll also return as Chani in Dune: Part Two and is expected to go back to work on her HBO series Euphoria, which won her two Emmy Awards.
Challengers hails from writer Justin Kuritzkr and director Luca Guadagnino, and it will hit the theatres on April 26, 2024. The film was initially picked as the opener of the 80th Venice International Film Festival but MGM Studios had to shift its release date in the face of the SAG-AFTRA strike.
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Sean Baker is a front-runner for the best original screenplay for his work on Anora, but this category is filled with many pleasant surprises. The list of contenders also includes A Real Pain (Jesse Eisenberg), Challengers (Justin Kuritzkes), Civil War (Alex Garland), and My Old A— (Megan Park).
Several blockbusters made it to the best adapted screenplay field, including Wicked and Dune: Part 2. They’ll face tough competition in the Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown, the crime comedy Hit Man, and the historical drama Nickel Boys.
As for the television field, Fallout, Mr. And Mrs. Smith, and Shōgun are leading the way with three nominations each. They’re nominated for best drama series, along with The Boys and The Diplomat. Abbot Elementary, The Bear, Hacks, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and What We Do in the Shadows are vying for the best comedy series prize.
The 2025 WGA Awards winners will be announced on February 15 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.
Original Screenplay
Adapted Screenplay
Documentary
Drama Series
Comedy Series
New Series
Limited Series
TV & Streaming Motion Pictures
Animation
Episodic Drama
Episodic Comedy
Comedy/Variety Series – Talk or Sketch
Comedy/Variety Specials
Quiz and audience participation
Daytime drama
Children’s episodic, long form, and specials
Challengers centers on a former tennis protégé Tashi Duncan who turns to coaching after suffering a career-ending injury, helping her husband Art (Mike Faist) rise to prominence and become a Grand Slam champion. They must face the ghosts of their past during a low-level Challenger event, where Art finds himself across the net from his former BFF and Tashi’s ex Patrick (Josh O’Connor).
Challengers topped the box office with $15 million grossed domestically, during a particularly slow week in North America. It also earned $10 million overseas.
These numbers are pretty impressive considering it’s an original film with an R-rating, and its star and producer Zendaya is hoping its success will inspire studios to give more original titles a wide release.
“We need to make more movies like this. It’s kind of scary because this is an original screenplay and those can be difficult to get people out to see. I hope that we can continue to have more variety (in Hollywood) and get people engaged with different kinds of films,” she told US Today.
Challengers centers on a former tennis player Tashi (Zendaya), who turned to caching after a career-ending injury. She used her skills to transform her husband Art (Mike Faist) into a world-famous grand slam champion, but they’re forced to deal with the ghosts of their pasts once he finds himself in the middle of a career slump.
“To jolt him out of his recent losing streak, she makes him play a “Challenger” event – close to the lowest level of pro tournament – where he finds himself standing across the net from his former best friend and Tashi’s former boyfriend (Josh O’Connor),” reads MGM’s official logline.
Challengers hails from the acclaimed director Luca Guadagnino (Call Me By Your Name), who co-wrote the script alongside Justin Kuritzkes. This creative duo also joined forces for the upcoming adaptation of William S. Burroughs’ short novel Queer starring Daniel Craig.
Challengers was supposed to serve as the opening film at last year’s Venice Film Festival before being hit by several major delays in the face of dual strikes in Hollywood. It’s now set to arrive in theatres on April 26.
Challengers follows a former tennis prodigy Tashi Duncan (Zendaya), who turned to coaching after experiencing a career-ending injury. She helped her husband Art (Mike Faist) become a Grand Slam champion, but they must face their biggest challenge yet when he’s set to face his former best friend and Tashi’s ex Patrick (Josh O’Connor) at a challenger event.
2024 is shaping up to be somewhat of a comeback year for Zendaya, and Challengers isn’t the only film she has on the way. She’ll also return as Chani in Dune: Part Two and is expected to go back to work on her HBO series Euphoria, which won her two Emmy Awards.
Challengers hails from writer Justin Kuritzkr and director Luca Guadagnino, and it will hit the theatres on April 26, 2024. The film was initially picked as the opener of the 80th Venice International Film Festival but MGM Studios had to shift its release date in the face of the SAG-AFTRA strike.
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