Challengers' Spider-Man reference is not about Tom Holland
Challengers director Luca Guadagnino has revealed why his movie includes a Spider-Man reference – and it's got nothing to do with Tom Holland.
Guadagnino's tense, steamy tennis drama stars Zendaya, Josh O'Connor and Mike Faist in a love triangle.
Early on in the film, Zendaya's tennis prodigy Tashi is having an argument with her husband Art (Faist) when their daughter Lily (AJ Lister) interrupts them to ask if she could watch the animated Spider-Verse movie instead of the tennis match playing on TV.
Related: Zendaya reacts to Spider-Man meme after Challengers role
While some fans thought the Spidey reference could be a nod to Zendaya playing MJ in the Marvel films (though she doesn't voice any character in the Spider-Verse movies), or even a hint at her romance with her MCU co-star Holland, there's a much more practical explanation as to why Guadagnino chose to mention the animated movie.
"When you get rights for something to be used in a movie, it's very complicated," he told Entertainment Weekly.
"Amy Pascal, our amazing producer, was of help there. I said, 'Amy, can we use one of your catalog titles so it's going to be easier to clear them?'
Related: How Challengers makes a welcome queer change to the love triangle
"[Lily]'s a girl; she's not going to choose to watch The Social Network or The Post, but maybe she's going to watch a Spider-Man cartoon, so I said, 'Why not Spider-Verse?'"
Guadagnino also said he didn't immediately realise viewers would try and connect the dots between his movie and the Spider-Man saga.
"Now I realise that it sounded like an in-joke, which, you know, the unconscious guides us all the time," the filmmaker said.
Challengers is out now in cinemas.
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