From Actor to Athlete: Inside Timothée Chalamet’s Table Tennis Training for ‘Marty Supreme’

For his breakout role in 2017’s Call Me by Your NameTimothée Chalamet learned Italian and how to play piano and guitar. To portray Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown last year, he picked up the guitar again, learned harmonica and took vocal lessons. Both roles earned Chalamet Oscar nominations.

Now, in addition to rapping, he’s seeking his third Oscar nod for A24’s Marty Supremein which he plays a ping-pong hustler dreaming big. This time, Chalamet’s preparation — training to perform the sport at its highest level — was once again extensive.

“He was singularly dedicated to getting this to be the same quality as the rest of the movie,” says Diego Schaaf, the film’s table tennis instructor. Schaaf grew up playing the sport in Switzerland but never competed professionally.

Chalamet’s preparation began long before Schaaf entered the picture. He secretly trained for years while working on projects like The French Dispatch, Wonkaand Dune: Part Two. So when he arrived for rehearsals for Marty Supremehis skill level impressed Schaaf, an expert who previously worked on Forrest Gump (1994), Balls of Fury (2007) and an episode of NBC’s Friends. Schaaf’s wife, Wei Wang — a US Olympian — also helped elevate Chalamet’s performance.

“We really dove into it last summer,” Schaaf says. “We 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.”

Because the film, directed by Josh Safdie, is set in that era, Chalamet had to unlearn modern technique. “Timothée being a dancer, he understood immediately how he needed to move,” Schaaf explains. “But we had to make that work within the context of relatively fast play.”

Wang worked closely with Chalamet to nail the period-specific techniques. “Different styles have very different strokes, and he understood all of it,” Schaaf says. “He wasn’t interested in doing the minimum. Even when he got it right, he’d say, ‘Let’s do it again.'”

That commitment came with challenges — especially since, as Schaaf notes, Chalamet performed all of his table tennis sequences himself, instead of using a stunt double.

“We considered finding a double,” Schaaf admits, “but it was hard to find someone who matched his physique and could play. From the beginning, I told Josh we needed the best possible players, because they can perform under pressure.”

Most Olympic-level table tennis players start training between the ages of 4 and 8, Schaaf explains. “So we knew there was a limit to how far we could go,” he says. “But Timothée understood the sport well enough to know how difficult a shot would be — and then how it should look if you actually made it.” Some of the difficult trick shots were missed but fixed in post-production.

That understanding was crucial when choreographing matches. “In recreational table tennis, you barely move,” Schaaf says. “This was very athletically demanding. He memorized every point, every movement, every shot. Timing was critical — some shots float, others travel fast — and he understood that immediately. He performed unbelievably well.”

Another 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. Unlike Chalamet, Tyler had never played table tennis before.

“It’s rare to find someone who’s literally never hit a ball,” Schaaf says. “He loved it. One time he came straight from the airport, ran into the club and said, ‘I’m going to buy myself a table!'”

But Tyler’s skill level in the film was intentionally much lower than Chalamet’s. “In the bowling alley scene, he’s not supposed to be a high-level player,” Schaaf explains. “But after just one or two sessions, he was already returning 10 or 12 balls, which isn’t easy. He was an absolute sweetheart — smiling the whole time.”

While the training took place in Los Angeles, Marty Supreme is set in 1950s Lower East Side Manhattan. Since both Safdie and Chalamet are from New York, capturing the city’s ping-pong culture was another priority.

“I don’t play in New York, but I’ve met a lot of New York players,” Schaaf says. “It felt very accurate. There’s more gambling, more of an underground vibe. When New York players come out West, it’s a different kind of energy.”

Although the film follows Marty’s hunger for success in table tennis, the fast-paced, anxiety-fueled intensity that the Safdie brothers’ films like Good Time (2017) and Uncut Gems (2019) are known for, remains front and center — even as Marty Supreme marks Safdie’s first solo feature without his brother Benny.

“I watched the movie and almost forgot there was table tennis in it,” Schaaf says with a laugh. “It was so enthralling. Then the first tournament scene comes up and I thought, ‘Oh right — here we go.’ Josh did a great job cutting it so you really feel the tension.”

Schaaf also makes a cameo in the film as the final match’s umpire — a last-minute surprise. “The night before, I get a text asking if I want to do it,” he says. “I figured I’d be there anyway. I had no idea that was going to happen.”

Chalamet’s dedication to the role did not come without risk. At the film’s New York City premiere earlier this month, Safdie said that the actor “almost lost an eye” during filming. While details weren’t shared, Chalamet has previously said he wore contacts to “mess up” his vision so he could wear real glasses for Marty’s signature look — which ultimately led to an “nasty” eye infection.

That same all-in mentality has led to the wildest press run of Chalamet’s career, which has included a satirical A24 marketing meeting, an orange blimp in the sky and becoming the first person to appear atop the Las Vegas Sphere, which lit up like an orange ping-pong ball with the film’s motto, “Dream Big.” He’s also sold exclusive Marty Supreme jackets, that had fans waiting 24 hours in line, lit the Empire State Building orange and crashed a table tennis tournament in New York.

Chalamet mirroring Marty’s high ambition has put a spotlight on table tennis.

“I really hope this gives the sport the breakthrough it deserves,” Schaaf says. “People don’t realize how many levels there are. You think you’re close to the top, and there are 30 levels in between. The better you get, the more you realize how little you know.”

He pauses, then laughs. “It takes a specific person — like Marty. Someone who says, ‘No matter how hard this is, I’m going to do this.’ Hopefully we’ll get more of those.”