{"id":705362,"date":"2025-12-27T15:30:16","date_gmt":"2025-12-27T12:30:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/inside-timothee-chalamets-ping-pong-training-for-marty-supreme\/"},"modified":"2025-12-27T15:30:16","modified_gmt":"2025-12-27T12:30:16","slug":"inside-timothee-chalamets-ping-pong-training-for-marty-supreme","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/inside-timothee-chalamets-ping-pong-training-for-marty-supreme\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet\u2019s Ping-Pong Training for \u2018Marty Supreme\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\tFor his breakout role in 2017\u2019s Call Me by Your Name<\/em>, Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet learned Italian and how to play piano and guitar. To portray Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown<\/em> last year, he picked up the guitar again, learned harmonica and took vocal lessons. Both roles earned Chalamet Oscar nominations.<\/p>\n

\n\tNow, in addition to rapp<\/a>ing, he\u2019s seeking his third Oscar nod for A24\u2019s Marty Supreme<\/em>, in which he plays a ping-pong hustler dreaming big. This time, Chalamet\u2019s preparation \u2014 training to perform the sport at its highest level \u2014 was once again extensive.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cHe was singularly dedicated to getting this to be the same quality as the rest of the movie,\u201d says Diego Schaaf, the film\u2019s table tennis instructor. Schaaf grew up playing the sport in Switzerland but never competed professionally. <\/p>\n

\n\tChalamet\u2019s preparation began long before Schaaf entered the picture. He secretly trained for years while working on projects like The French Dispatch<\/em>, Wonka<\/em>, and Dune: Part Two<\/em>. So when he arrived for rehearsals for Marty Supreme<\/em>, his skill level impressed Schaaf, an expert who previously worked on Forrest Gump<\/em> (1994), Balls of Fury<\/em> (2007) and an episode of NBC\u2019s Friends<\/em>. Schaaf\u2019s wife, Wei Wang \u2014 a U.S. Olympian \u2014 also helped elevate Chalamet\u2019s performance.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe really dove into it last summer,\u201d Schaaf says. \u201cWe had to bring the mechanics of the strokes to a world-class level from the 1950s, which is distinctly different from how the sport is played today.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBecause the film, directed by Josh Safdie, is set in that era, Chalamet had to unlearn modern technique. \u201cTimoth\u00e9e being a dancer, he understood immedia<\/a>tely how he needed to move,\u201d Schaaf explains. \u201cBut we had to make that work within the context of relatively fast play.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWang worked closely with Chalamet to nail the period-specific techniques. \u201cDifferent styles have very different strokes, and he understood all of it,\u201d Schaaf says. \u201cHe wasn\u2019t interested in doing the minimum. Even when he got it right, he\u2019d say, \u2018Let\u2019s do it again.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\tTimoth\u00e9e Chalamet in Marty Supreme.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA24<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\n\tThat commitment came with challenges \u2014 especially since, as Schaaf notes, Chalamet performed all of his table tennis sequences himself, instead of using a stunt double.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWe considered finding a double,\u201d Schaaf admits, \u201cbut it was hard to find someone who matched his physique and<\/em> could play. From the beginning, I told Josh we needed the best possible players, because they can perform under pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tMost Olympic-level table tennis players start training between the ages of 4 and 8, Schaaf explains. \u201cSo we knew there was a limit to how far we could go,\u201d he says. \u201cBut Timoth\u00e9e understood the sport well enough to know how difficult a shot would be \u2014 and then how it should look if you actually made it.\u201d Some of the difficult trick shots were missed but fixed in post-production.<\/p>\n

\n\tThat understanding was crucial when choreographing matches. \u201cIn recreational table tennis, you barely move,\u201d Schaaf says. \u201cThis was very athletically demanding. He memorized every point, every movement, every shot. Timing was critical \u2014 some shots float, others travel<\/a> fast \u2014 and he understood that immediately. He performed unbelievably well.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAnother high-profile name in the film, Tyler, the Creator, also trained with Schaaf and Wang at their club in Los Angeles, the Westside Table Tennis Center<\/a>. Unlike Chalamet, Tyler had never played table tennis before.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s rare to find someone who\u2019s literally never hit a ball,\u201d Schaaf says. \u201cHe loved it. One time he came straight from the airport, ran into the club and said, \u2018I\u2019m going to buy myself a table!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBut Tyler\u2019s skill level in the film was intentionally much lower than Chalamet\u2019s. \u201cIn the bowling alley scene, he\u2019s not supposed to be a high-level player,\u201d Schaaf explains. \u201cBut after just one or two sessions, he was already returning 10 or 12 balls, which isn\u2019t easy. He was an absolute sweetheart \u2014 smiling the whole time.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\tTyler, the Creator and Timoth\u00e9e Chalamet in Marty Supreme<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tA24<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\n\tWhile the training took place in Los Angeles, Marty Supreme<\/em> is set in 1950s Lower East Side Manhattan. Since both Safdie and Chalamet are from New York, capturing the city\u2019s ping-pong culture was another priority.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI don\u2019t play in New York, but I\u2019ve met a lot of New York players,\u201d Schaaf says. \u201cIt felt very accurate. There\u2019s more gambling, more of an underground vibe. When New York players come out West, it\u2019s a different kind of energy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThough the film follows Marty\u2019s hunger for success in table tennis, the fast-paced, anxiety-fueled intensity that the Safdie brothers\u2019 films like Good Time<\/em> (2017) and Uncut Gems<\/em> (2019) are known for, remains front and center \u2014 even as Marty Supreme<\/em> marks Safdie\u2019s first solo feature without his brother Benny.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI watched the movie and almost forgot there was table tennis in it,\u201d Schaaf says with a laugh. \u201cIt was so enthralling. Then the first tournament scene comes up and I thought, \u2018Oh right \u2014 here we go.\u2019 Josh did a great job cutting it so you really feel the tension.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tSchaaf also makes a cameo in the film as the final match\u2019s umpire \u2014 a last-minute surprise. \u201cThe night before, I get a text asking if I want to do it,\u201d he says. \u201cI figured I\u2019d be there anyway. I had no idea that was going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tChalamet\u2019s dedication to the role didn\u2019t come without risk. At the film\u2019s New York City premiere earlier this month, Safdie said that the actor \u201calmost lost an eye\u201d during filming. While details weren\u2019t shared, Chalamet has previously said<\/a> he wore contacts to \u201cmess up\u201d his vision so he could wear real glasses for Marty\u2019s signature look \u2014 which ultimately led to an \u201cnasty\u201d eye infection<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\tThat same all-in mentality has led to the <\/em>wildest press run of Chalamet\u2019s career, which has included a satirical A24 marketing meeting, an orange blimp in the sky<\/a> and becoming the first person to appear atop the Las Vegas Sphere<\/a>, which lit up like an orange ping-pong ball with the film\u2019s motto, \u201cDream Big.\u201d He\u2019s also sold exclusive Marty Supreme<\/em> jackets<\/a>, that have had fans waiting 24 hours in line, lit the Empire State Building orange<\/a> and crashed a table<\/a> tennis tournament<\/a> in New York.<\/p>\n

\n\tChalamet mirroring Marty\u2019s high ambition has put a spotlight on table tennis.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI really hope this gives the sport the breakthrough it\u2019s deserved,\u201d Schaaf says. \u201cPeople don\u2019t realize how many levels there are. You think you\u2019re close to the top, and there are 30 levels in between. The better you get, the more you realize how little you know.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tHe pauses, then laughs. \u201cIt takes a specific person \u2014 like Marty. Someone who says, \u2018No matter how hard this is, I\u2019m going to do this.\u2019 Hopefully we\u2019ll get more of those.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n