Fans of an underdog sports comedy will be all over upcoming Apple TV movie The Dink, starring New Girl's Jake Johnson as a former tennis prodigy taking up pickleball in the name of rehab.
Giving off some serious - if less raucous and more charming - Dodgeball vibes, The Dink has just released a first trailer, seeing Johnson's Dusty Boyd coaching sassy kids at his dad Chuck's (Ed Harris) country club.
When Dusty aggravates an old injury and needs to hang up his racquet for a bit, his doctor (Ben Stiller) prescribes him a healthy dose of pickleball, much to his horror.
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"I know pickleball is sort of dorky, but it's the fastest route back to tennis for you," Stiller's character tells Dusty, who's so confused by the idea of playing anything other than tennis he cluelessly brings the 'pickleball' prescription to a pharmacy.
Dusty has to stop his crusade against the new craze taking over his father's club and seriously commits to pickleball, helped by his new partner, Candace (Mary Steenburgen).
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Finding himself not only getting better but also actively enjoying the sport he used to denigrate so harshly, Dusty discovers a new purpose in life and an unexpected way to face his fears and his childhood nemesis, former pro player Andy Roddick, portrayed by the actual tennis star.
Described as a "laugh-out-loud underdog story" by Apple TV, The Dink is produced by Stiller and directed by Josh Greenbaum, known for Kirsten Wiig and Annie Mumolo comedy Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, starring Jamie Dornan in a hilarious, against-type role.
Written by Sean Clements, The Dink also stars Patton Oswalt, Chloe Fineman, Chris Parnell and Aaron Chen.
The Dink becomes available to stream on Apple TV on 24 July.
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Reporter, Digital Spy
Stefania is a freelance writer specialising in TV and movies. After graduating from City University, London, she covered LGBTQ+ news and pursued a career in entertainment journalism, with her work appearing in outlets including Little White Lies, The Skinny, Radio Times and Digital Spy.
Her beats are horror films and period dramas, especially if fronted by queer women. She can argue why Scream is the best slasher in four languages (and a half).
