Ben Stiller And Jake Johnson Set To Star In Pickleball Comedy The Dink — Josh Greenbaum Will Direct

With his first three films, director Josh Greenbaum has given us murderous, maraca wielding Jamie Dornan (Barb And Star Go To Vista Del Mar), Will Ferrell as a dog on a mission to bite his abusive owner's wiener off (Strays), and a properly touching road-trip movie (Will & Harper). And now, for the unpredictable filmmaker's next trick, he's set to tackle the world of pickleball in The Dink. And what's more, per THR's reporting, Jake Johnson is gearing up to lead the sports comedy, with Ben Stiller, Mary Steenburgen, and Ed Harris all lined up to co-star in the movie alongside him.

Written by Kevin Can F*** Himself scribe Sean Clements, The Dink will see Johnson star as an over-the-hill tennis pro who reluctantly picks up the pickleball paddle in order to save a local club and attempt to earn his father's respect. Who Stiller — a man who knows a thing or two about underdog sports comedies thanks to his work on genre classic Dodgeball — and the rest of the ensemble will play has yet to be revealed. We do however know that Stiller, most often found behind the camera rather than in front these days working on shows like Severance and High Desert, will play a key supporting role in the movie — and so too will US tennis legend Andy Roddick.

A sort-of mercurial tennis/ping-pong/badminton hybrid, pickleball has absolutely exploded in popularity over the last three years, making a movie revolving around the sport almost inevitable. And, with Josh Safdie preparing to paddle up with his Timothée Chalamet ping pong movie Marty Supreme and Luca Guadagnino's Challengers blowing audiences away earlier this year, there's clearly a buzz about racket-based movies in Hollywood right now. Production is set to get underway on The Dink in November, so we'll see whether Greenbaum's latest plays its competitors off the court — or if it drops the, er, pickleball — pretty soon.