Challengers soundtrack: Original score, tracklist, and how to listen

Zendaya in the Challengers posterWarner Bros.

Here’s everything you need to know about the Challengers soundtrack, breaking down the original score and music featured in Zendaya’s new sports movie.

The only thing that surpasses the whip-sharp dialogue and exhilarating tennis throwdowns in Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers is the music. From the small teases released prior to the film, it quickly became clear that the soundtrack wasn’t messing around in this scandalous athletic drama.

The music in Challengers is a perfect representation of the atmosphere. An electric, rhythmic score bombards the sports movie — perfect for a film as sexy and sweaty as this. Once you watch Challengers, you’ll want the playlist on repeat, and luckily, we’ve got all the details.

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From information on who created the highly-successful music to the complete Challengers tracklist, here’s what you need to know.

Contents

Who is the Challengers music by?

The techno-influenced music for Challengers was created by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross (aka: the duo behind Nine Inch Nails), with an additional mixed version in collaboration with German DJ, Boys Noize.

Together, Reznor and Ross previously worked on the score for The Social Network (for which they received an Academy Award), Gone Girl, Soul, and another Luca Guadagnino feature, Bones & All.

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Speaking about their inspiration for the Challengers score, Reznor shared that the prompt given by Guadagnino was: “What if all the music was driving, thumping techno, like a heartbeat that makes the movie fun?”

Alongside their own score, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross also released a mixed version in collaboration with Boys Noize. This version is conceived to be like a continuous DJ set, and runs 28 minutes-long, featuring reimaginings of nine songs made for the Challengers score. 

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“It’s been a fun challenge to turn this into one fluid experience and take it even further by redesigning the tracks, creating new elements and changing certain parts,” Boys Noize said. “Especially on ‘Compress / Repress,’ which turns super epic in the end. Working with Trent and Atticus has been a dream come true; they’ve been so great and helpful during the entire process.”

Zendaya as Tashi in ChallengersWarner Bros.

Challengers (Original Score) tracklist

  • ‘Challengers’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘”I Know”‘ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘Yeah x10’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘L’oeuf’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘The Signal’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘Brutalizer’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘Stopper’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘Brutalizer 2’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘The Points That Matter’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘Lullaby’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘Final Set’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘Pull Over’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘Friday Afternoons, Op. 7: A New Year Carol’ by Choir of Downside School, Purley, Viola Tunnard, Benjamin Britten
  • ‘Friday Afternoons, Op. 7: A New Year Carol (Part 2)’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘Challengers: Match Point’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
  • ‘Compress / Repress’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross

Challengers [MIXED] tracklist

  • ‘I Know [MIXED]’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Boys Noize
  • ‘Yeah x10 [MIXED]’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Boys Noize
  • ‘L’oeuf [MIXED]’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Boys Noize
  • ‘Challengers [MIXED]’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Boys Noize
  • ‘Pre Signal [MIXED]’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Boys Noize
  • ‘Brutalizer [MIXED]’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Boys Noize
  • ‘Compress / Repress [MIXED]’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Boys Noize
  • ‘A New Year Carol [MIXED]’ by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Boys Noize

Where to listen to the Challengers score

Both the Challengers original score and the remixed version is currently available to listen to on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify and Apple Music.

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The official album was released on the same day as the movie, April 26. You can check it out for yourself on Spotify or Apple Music, or wherever you stream your tunes. If you’re looking to listen to the [MIXED] version, you can also find this on the same platforms.

For more, check out the Challengers ending explained, find out whether it’s based on a true story, and learn more about the Challengers age rating.

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