Apple Original Films said Monday it acquired The Dink, a new comedy movie starring Jake Johnson as a faded tennis player who embraces the sport that shall not be named: pickleball.
Josh Greenbaum (Will & Harper and Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar) will direct a promising cast led by Johnson (New Girl and Minx), along with Mary Steenburgen, Ed Harris and Chloe Fineman.
Comedy legend (and Severance executive producer) Ben Stiller will make an on-screen appearance. As will actual tennis stars Andy Roddick and John McEnroe.
The Dink movie: A pickleball comedy coming to Apple TV+
Apple TV+ execs seem to have a soft spot in their hearts for sports comedies. Maybe that’s because Ted Lasso became the streaming service’s breakout hit. For whatever reason, the company continues to add sports-oriented programming, including recent hit comedy series Stick (which stars Owen Williams as a washed-up golf pro seeking redemption … sounds a bit familiar) and multiple documentaries.
Here’s how Apple TV+ described The Dink movie in a press release on Monday:
The Dink stars Johnson as a washed-up tennis pro who, desperate to save a struggling club and earn his father’s respect, is compelled to break a sacred vow and do the unthinkable: play pickleball. The film features an all-star comedy cast with Ben Stiller set for a role, alongside tennis champions Andy Roddick and John McEnroe in key supporting roles. The cast of The Dink also includes Mary Steenburgen, Ed Harris, Chloe Fineman, Aaron Chen, Patton Oswalt, Chris Parnell and Christine Taylor.
WTH is a dink?
For those not in the know, a “dink” in pickleball is “a soft shot hit on a bounce from the [non-volley zone] intended to arc over the net and land within the opposing [non-volley zone] either straight across or diagonally crosscourt,” according to the USA Pickleball Association. “An effective dink arcs downward as it crosses the net, creating a more difficult shot to return than a power shot.”
The sport continues to grow rapidly in popularity, particularly among older players, with millions of people jumping on the pickleball bandwagon in recent years. With that surge comes controversy. Tennis players complain about “picklers” invading their courts. And nearby residents complain about the racket caused by hard paddles smacking wiffle ball-like pickleballs.
I’m sure you can expect lots more pickleball lingo — and not a few angry confrontations between tennis players and picklers — when The Dink movie arrives.
The Dink movie producer credits
The Dink, written by Sean Clements (Workaholics and Curb Your Enthusiasm), is being produced by Ben Stiller and John Lesher for Red Hour Films, and Rob Paris and Mike Witherill for Rivulet Entertainment. In addition to playing the lead role in The Dink, Jake Johnson serves as producer of the film. The executive producers are Rick Steele, Clements, Greenbaum, Joe Hardesty, Jonathan McCoy and Daniel Crosser.
Apple also took the opportunity to remind us that Johnson will star alongside Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black and She-Hulk: Attorney at Law) in the upcoming Apple TV+ comedy/thriller series Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed.
Will it show in theaters?
Apple provided no details about whether The Dink movie will enjoy a theatrical run ahead of streaming for Apple TV+ subscribers. Nor did it mention when the sports comedy will debut.
So far, Apple Original Films has found only limited success with theatrical runs. Even movies by marquee directors like Martin Scorsese (Killers of the Flower Moon) and Ridley Scott (Napoleon) punched below their weight, at least financially. Both those films are now available to stream for Apple TV+ subscribers.
Still, Apple TV+ became the first streaming service to earn a Best Picture Oscar with CODA in 2022. And moviegoers flocked to see F1: The Movie. It raced to the No. 1 spot at the international box office in June.
