Timothée Chalamet underwent extensive ping-pong training for his role as a hustler in Josh Safdie's Marty Supreme, set in 1950s New York. The actor, guided by trainer Diego Schaaf and Olympian Wei Wang, performed all scenes without a stunt double and adapted to period-specific techniques. The film's soundtrack features anachronistic 1980s music to blend past and present themes.
Timothée Chalamet has a history of immersive preparation for roles, from learning Italian and instruments for Call Me by Your Name in 2017 to guitar and harmonica for A Complete Unknown in 2024, both earning Oscar nominations. For A24's Marty Supreme, he secretly trained in table tennis for years alongside projects like The French Dispatch, Wonka, and Dune: Part Two.
Diego Schaaf, the film's table tennis instructor who worked on Forrest Gump (1994) and Balls of Fury (2007), was impressed by Chalamet's skill upon arrival for rehearsals. With Schaaf's wife, U.S. Olympian Wei Wang, they refined 1950s-era strokes, distinct from modern play. 'We really dove into it last summer,' Schaaf said. Chalamet, a dancer, quickly grasped the movements for fast-paced matches, memorizing every point and shot. He performed all sequences himself, forgoing a stunt double due to physique and skill matching challenges.
The athletic demands were high: 'In recreational table tennis, you barely move,' Schaaf noted. Some trick shots required post-production fixes, as Olympic players typically start young, between ages 4 and 8. Tyler, the Creator, also trained at the Westside Table Tennis Center in Los Angeles, starting from zero experience but quickly returning balls in scenes portraying a lower skill level.
Directed by Josh Safdie in his first solo feature after collaborations like Good Time (2017) and Uncut Gems (2019), the film is set in 1950s Lower East Side Manhattan, capturing New York's underground ping-pong culture with gambling vibes. Safdie incorporated 1980s music, including Tears for Fears' 'Everybody Wants to Rule the World,' Peter Gabriel's 'I Have the Touch,' and New Order's 'The Perfect Kiss,' to evoke postmodern nostalgia. An alternate script ending placed Marty in the 1980s at a Tears for Fears concert, reflecting themes of past haunting the future.
Composer Daniel Lopatin (Oneohtrix Point Never), who scored Safdie's prior films, used 1980s synths like the Yamaha DX7 and percussive mallet strikes mimicking ping-pong balls. 'The score is a kind of abstraction or an undercurrent,' Lopatin said. Chalamet's dedication included risks, like nearly losing an eye from contacts causing an infection for the character's glasses look. The press tour featured stunts such as lighting the Empire State Building orange and appearing on the Las Vegas Sphere.
Schaaf hopes the film boosts table tennis: 'I really hope this gives the sport the breakthrough it’s deserved.'
