Battle of the Sexes Movie Fun Facts

The day after the Battle of the Sexes Movie Premiere, we were able to attend the press junket for the film! After having seen the movie and learning about the story, I loved the idea of getting to sit down and hear what they had to say about the film and getting to be a part of it. We were joined by Emma Stone, Steve Carell, Billie Jean King, Andrea Riseborough, Alan Cumming, Austin Stowell, Natalie Morales, Jessica McNamee, Bill Pullman, Elisabeth Shue, Eric Christian Olsen, Sara Bareilles, Nick Britell, Valerie Faris & Jonathan Dayton.

I was super excited to be able to snap a quick selfie with Steve Carell…

Battle of the Sexes  Movie Fun Facts

• Emma Stone had never played a real person before this role so she didn’t know what her process was going to be. After meeting Billie Jean (and playing some tennis with her), she wanted to watch a lot of footage from that time period and did a lot of research of her during that time so that she could capture that feeling and bring that to life.

• Steve Carell was not wearing a wig. He actually grew out his hair and used the same exact die color, Clairol #87, that Bobbie used since Bobbie made it a point to say what he used. *He made it a point to joke that it affected his love life with his wife.

• The original footage of Howard Cosell and Rosie announcing during the Battle of the Sexes was used. They did a Split screen using Howard on on side with Natalie Morales acting as Rosie on the other. She listened to Rosies’s audio and had to say the words at the right time so that it would flow.

• George Foreman was actually a security guard at some of the tennis matches during that time.

• The old logo of Fox was used in the opening of this film since it is filmed as though being shot during that time.

• Elton John and Billie Jean King are really good friends (they met 2 weeks before she played Bobby Riggs). …he actually wrote a song for her, Philadelphia Freedom, so Billie Jean was happy that one of his songs, Rocket Man, was included in the movie.

• Bill Pullman’s son, Lewis, was also in the film, he actually played Larry Riggs (Bobbie Rigg’s son).

• Billie Jean King and Larry (her husband at the time) were very much into changing the world of tennis together.

• Because of the timing of the audition, Austin Stowell didn’t do much research for his role.

A few more Battle of the Sexes fun facts…

Valerie Faris’s name appears in front of Jonathan Dayton’s in the @billievsbobby credits – she’s not just an “and” #BattleOfTheSexes

— Leanette Fernandez (@leanettef) September 17, 2017

Vintage equipment was used by Nicholas Britell to compose some of the @billievsbobby music #BattleoftheSexes

— Leanette Fernandez (@leanettef) September 17, 2017

The Battle of the Sexes movie is now playing in theaters!

The electrifying 1973 tennis match between World number one Billie Jean King (Emma Stone) and ex-champ and serial hustler Bobby Riggs (Steve Carell) was billed as THE BATTLE OF THE SEXES and became one of the most watched televised sports events of all time. The match caught the zeitgeist and sparked a global conversation on gender equality, spurring on the feminist movement. Trapped in the media glare, King and Riggs were on opposite sides of a binary argument, but off-court each was fighting more personal and complex battles. With a supportive husband urging her to fight the Establishment for equal pay, the fiercely private King was also struggling to come to terms with her own sexuality, while Riggs gambled his legacy and reputation in a bid to relive the glories of his past. Together, Billie and Bobby served up a cultural spectacle that resonated far beyond the tennis courts and animated the discussions between men and women in bedrooms and boardrooms around the world.