Bloody Tennis puts its gory horror front and center in its first trailer. Starring Wonder Man alum Zlatko Burić, the trailer did not pull back any punches when it came to the more disturbing aspects of the film.
The synopsis of the film reads, “After being admitted to an elite tennis academy hidden deep in the
South of Europe, Sophie must contend not only with fierce competition but also with the school’s increasingly sinister undercurrents. What begins as a competitive rite of passage soon unravels into something darker, forcing Sophie to choose between chasing greatness and the connections to her friends and lovers. As the stakes rise, she must decide whether to become the player she’s
always dreamed of—or keep her empathy.”
Bloody Tennis brings horror to an elite Southern European tennis academy
The trailer shows Sophie entering the school, which decidedly has an eerie vibe. While there is a certain familiarity in the ribbing and pranks the students engage in, things immediately take a more serious turn. The trailer does not shy away from depicting blood and gore, and also has a focus on leeches, which seem to be an important symbol in the narrative.
The trailer promises a lot: a creepy montage of what looks like meat, Sophie being romantically involved with one of her classmates, and plenty of tennis. It is intercut with brutal imagery of a mysterious figure on campus, the faculty providing generic and potentially harmful advice to the students, along with a few shots that work perfectly as jump scares in their own right.
Alongside Zlatko Burić and Guldberg Kampp, the film stars Elina Löwensohn, Tracy Gotoas, Helena Zengel, Lily Taïeb, Juliana Vieira Guerra, Lucie Zhang, and Vincent Romeo. The movie will be the English-language debut of Greek-German filmmaker Nikias Chryssos, who directed and wrote the movie.
The film debuted at the Locarno Film Festival, which was held from August 5th to August 15th. The film will be exclusively available on the Shudder streaming service on September 25, 2026.
Originally reported by Anuraag Chatterjee on ComingSoon.net
