Shia LaBeouf and Sverrir Gudnason in 'Borg/McEnroe': First Look at Actors as Tennis Giants
In 1980, John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg faced off in what would become one of the greatest Wimbledon finals matches ever. That David-and-Goliath showdown, between an up-and-comer from the USA and the four-time defending champion from Sweden, is the stuff big-screen sports dramas are made of — and so it will be, when Borg/McEnroe hits theaters next year, with Shia LaBeouf as the U.S. tennis legend.
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Given LaBeouf’s own wild public persona, he seems a natural fit for the role of McEnroe, the fiery champion who remains as notable for his on-court outbursts as his seven career Grand Slam singles titles. The first image of LaBeouf as McEnroe (tweeted by PiFiZone; see it below) shows he’s not the mirror image of the real-life tennis player — especially when compared to co-star Sverrir Gudnason, who’s the spitting image of Borg.
First image of Shia LaBeouf and Sverrir Gudnason as John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg from the upcoming movie “Borg/McEnr… pic.twitter.com/wRn5M9IA7c
— PiFiZone (@PiFiZone) October 4, 2016
Nonetheless, the actor’s go-for-broke spirit figures to help energize this tale about the duo’s intense rivalry (they faced each other 14 times in official competition — each winning seven times — and eight times at invitationals, where each won four times). The centerpiece is that legendary 1980 Wimbledon finals match, featuring a 20-minute fourth-set tie-breaker in which the American — then gunning for his first Wimbledon crown — fought off five match points to push the contest to a decisive fifth set, which was won by the Swede. McEnroe would go on to win three singles titles at Wimbledon in his career.
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In May, LaBeouf told Variety that he took to the role because “you look for parallels in your life, and I’m lucky because there is a lot here…Everything in common. Passionate. Perfectionist. Narcissistic. I’m a bit of a caricature also…This is epic. It’s f—ing epic. This is the biggest movie I’ve been in lately.” Directed by Janus Metz Pedersen, Borg/McEnroe slams into theaters some time in 2017.
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