Timothée Chalamet’s new movie, Marty Supreme, follows the journey of a pro ping-pong player — but is it based on a true story?

Chalamet stars as Marty Mauser, an inspiring 1950s table tennis player. The film also stars Gwyneth Paltrow, Fran Drescher, Odessa A’zion, Kevin O’Leary, Abel Ferrara, Tyler, the Creator and more.

While Marty Mauser is not a real person, the character is based on the real-life ping-pong star, Marty Reisman. Marty Supreme is not a direct reflection of Reisman’s life, but it does serve as a loose interpretation. Director and writer of the A24 production, Josh Safdie, opened up about how he was inspired by Reisman’s dream to put ping-pong on the sports map.

“My goal was to make it as large as I possibly could,” Safdie said in an October 2025 interview with The Holl

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