'Challengers' movie is projected to win US box office in its opening weekend

Challengers movie is expected to win the US box office in its opening weekend showing in 3,477 North American theaters. It is projected to make $14-$15 million boosted by an impressive opening day of $6.2 million.

Zendaya stars as a tennis player involved in a love triangle. According to tennis legend, Tracy Austin, the movie shows how competitive and difficult it is for professional tennis players to break into the WTA and ATP Tours.

The movie was supposed to come out in September 2023, but it was delayed so that the cast could do press for it, something that could not happen last fall during the actors' and writers' strikes.

Tennis is gaining popularity

Tennis is finding its way to the mainstream. It has a long way to go to be as fan-crazed as NFL football or MLB baseball, but Challengers, and the 2021 movie about the Williams sisters' father, King Richard's, successes at the box office spotlight the sport for potential new fans.

The sport has gotten the attention of football legends who spoke out this week about how much they admire the game and the athleticism required to play it at a high level.

Reggie Bush had a big week finally getting his Heisman Trophy back. Before that happened, he was on Tennis Channel with his daughter Briseis who aspires to be a professional tennis player when she grows up. Bush plans to take his daughter to Wimbledon this summer, and both father and daughter are excited about the experience.

Days later, Arizona Cardinals legend Larry Fitzgerald appeared on the Tennis Channel and talked about how much he loves to watch tennis, calling tennis players "the best athletes in the world" and citing Carlos Alcaraz and Jessica Pegula among his favorites.

Another opportunity to spotlight the sport to the world will be at the 2024 Paris Olympics held at Roland Garros. Olympic viewers not familiar with the French Open will get a crash course in the history of the venue, tennis's annual clay court Grand Slam, and the players who excel in the sport.

More is better in the case of growing the sport across fanbases in the United States and around the world. 2024 is shaping up to be a banner year for doing so.

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