Jake Johnson takes up picketball in zany comedy: trailer
The former hero of New Girl plays an ex-tennis prodigy who despite himself converted to pickleball in Les Fous du Pickleball, a crazy sports comedy expected on Apple TV.
After dodgeball, it’s time for pickleball.
Thirty years after helping to make dodgeball a cult movie sport, Ben Stiller is interested in another booming sporting phenomenon.
His new project, The Dink – baptized in France Pickleball Madmen –, tackles with humor this discipline derived from tennis, less physical than padel, which has experienced an explosion in popularity since the end of the 2010s, particularly in North America. To lead this crazy comedy, the producer called on Jake Johnson, the unforgettable troublemaker from New Girl.
The actor plays Dusty Boyd, “a former tennis prodigy in decline, reduced to coaching the rowdy kids at his father Chuck’s (Ed Harris) country club. Desperately seeking recognition from his father, Dusty blindly supports Chuck’s vendetta against the new phenomenon that has taken over the club: pickleball. But when Dusty re-aggravates an old injury, preventing him from playing tennis, he does the unthinkable, for his own good. Not only does he try his hand at pickleball, but thanks in part to his wonderful new partner Candace (Mary Steenburgen), he loves it. Divided between two worlds, Dusty must face the ghosts of his past sporting failures, including his childhood enemy Andy Roddick (Andy Roddick). Dusty then embarks on a desperate quest for the future of the club, his father’s love and his own identity..”
Also in the cast are Patton Oswalt, Chloe Fineman, Chris Parnell, Aaron Chen and even Ben Stiller, who makes an appearance.
Directed by Josh Greenbaum, Pickleball Madmen (The Dink) will be available on July 24, 2026 on Apple TV in France.
