He may be getting an Oscar nomination for playing Bob Dylan in Totally Unknowns (yes, I said that based solely on the trailer — what’s in it?), but Timothée Chalamet still doesn’t seem interested enough in what he’s done and how satisfied he is with his accomplishments: Namely, he’s set to star in a thriller about a professional table tennis player, directed by Josh Safdie of “Good Times” and “Uncut Gems” and co-starring Oscar-winning screenwriter Kaynan Mughal.
The new film, which the filmmaker co-wrote with his regular collaborator Ronald Bronstein and co-produced by Chalamet and beloved indie label A24, is titled Marty Supreme, which was reportedly inspired by table tennis player Marty Reisman. Born in Manhattan in the 1930s, he began playing table tennis on the Lower East Side, competing for bets and prize money and eventually becoming the U.S. men’s singles champion. His memoir, Money Players: Confessions of America’s Greatest Table Tennis Player and Hustler, was published in 1974.
While plot details of the film have been kept under wraps, sources close to the production have confirmed that Marty’s rise to power will be a fictional origin story rather than a traditional biopic. Under Safdie’s guidance, you wouldn’t expect anything else.
Of course, Chalamet will play the lead role, but on August 28, it was revealed that Gwyneth Paltrow will star alongside him in an undisclosed role. It’s an exciting move for the Goop founder, who has retired from the big screen in recent years — she was last seen in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame and Netflix’s The Politician.
Now, the first photos from the set have surfaced … they’re stunning, to say the least, featuring a Chalamet we’ve never seen before, dressed strangely with steel-rimmed glasses and a mustache.
