Why Did the First Page of the 'Challengers' Screenplay Go Viral?

The 'Challengers' Screenplay 

Over the weekend, the screenplay for Challengers by Justin Kuritzkes went absolutely viral on Screenwriting Twitter. People were astonished at the number of "unfilmables" on the first page of the script.

Typically, newer screenwriters are told that they should only put on the page the things they can show on the screen, and not to tell your reader any extras.

But the thing I have said many times over on this website is that there are no screenwriting rules. Your job is to create the blueprint for the story.

And on the first page here, we have some incredible writing that builds tension.

We immediately know the stakes in this movie and can feel the ripple of intensity that's pulsating throughout everyone on the screen.

Here's the thing, if you read past page one, this script falls back into a more natural storytelling techniques, and it weaves an amazing story. But page one is where you need to grab your readers.

If you just saw two people playing tennis, you wouldn't understand the context or what's at stake.

This script does a great job putting context into the character descriptions, making them attractive for the cast ereading as well as executives who may think about stars.

Also, it really sets the stage for the setting, so we fully understand these two are kind of slumming it here. And it plants a lot of questions as to why they are here, what their relationship is with each other, and with the woman watching them.

Screenwriting "rules" do not exist.

And if you can write as well as this first page shows Kuritzkes can, you can get away with anything you want.

Listen to our interview with Challengers writer Justin Kuritzkes