Is 'Marty Supreme' Real? The Wild True Story Behind Chalamet's Ping Pong Hustler Role

The first look at Timothee Chalamet's latest, and most highly anticipated movie, Marty Supreme, provided a jarring transformation for the 29-year-old rising star. After all, the popular actor revealed a new mustache, wire-rimmed glasses and a drastic change to his hairstyle. While Marty Supreme has drawn a blaze of intrigue, it's also sparked a popular question: Is Marty Supreme based on a true story? Although it's dubbed as a fictionalized original, its inspiration leans heavily on the chaotic, high-stakes life of former ping-pong hustler Marty Reisman. The wild truth behind the legend who inspired Josh Safdie's latest film is pretty incredible, and it includes a role as the opening performance for the Harlem Globetrotters.

The 'Ping Pong Gangster:' Who Was the Real Marty Reisman?

Chalamet has played a broad range of different roles thus far in his acting career, but stepping into this specific character was enough to ensure he pulled out all the stops on his promotional tour for Marty Supreme. His confidence, swagger and all-around persona felt like that of Reisman's throughout his career. The gritty, eccentric hustler known for wearing fedoras and flashy attire effectively played table tennis like it was high-stakes poker.

Reisman didn't just excel at the sport; he was a one-man show while putting on performances for the crowd as well. He was known for measuring the net's height before matches with $100 bills, as the New York Times highlighted. He was part of the Harlem Globetrotters' beloved show as the opening act for a period.

However, what sums up Reisman's mindset and approach is a quote previously given to the New York Times, in which he compared table tennis to show business.

"Table tennis is like show business," Reisman said. "You’ve got to have presentation."

As the Times highlighted, Reisman was wearing a "Borsalino fedora, skintight red turtleneck and tinted glasses indoors" at the time of the interview.

Fact vs. Fiction: How Accurate is A24’s 'Marty Supreme'?

Although there is a basis of the character focused on Reisman, Marty Supreme is not a biopic. Safdie previously told The Hollywood Reporter that he did use the well-known player's memoir, The Money Player: The Confessions of America’s Greatest Table Tennis Champion and Hustler, as an "entry point." However, it's not a tit-for-tat approach to creating the character.

Chamalet's role as Marty Supreme will bring substantial differences from Reisman's life, though other parts will be similar. The obsession with the "hardbat" style of ping pong, the hustle and grind—there'll be comparisons in the movie that are understandably connected. However, the film as a whole is a unique work created by Safdie and Chalamet.

One thing that's certain is that Chalamet didn't take the lead role in Marty Supreme lightly. This much became obvious when the actor detailed his six-year prep for the role, which included intense practice sessions, many of which took place during breaks while he was filming other movies.

Here's a look at a brief rundown of Chalamet's preparation for Marty Supreme, which he detailed to The Hollywood Reporter:

• Began with ping-pong lessons at a 24-hour facility in 2018.
• Chalamet transformed his living room into a table tennis room during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• He had a ping pong table in London during the filming of Wonka
• The extended practice sessions continued in Budapest, Jordan, during the filming of Dune 2.
• He had a table set up while in Abu Dhabi.
• Another ping pong table at the Cannes Film Festival for The French Dispatch.
• Chalamet's table tennis lessons continued in Saint-Tropez after The French Dispatch.

It's been an incredible stretch for Chalamet, and it's culminated in a movie that many believe could lead to an Oscar-winning performance. Marty Supreme is officially in theaters as of Christmas Day, Dec. 25, and the rave reviews are already pouring in. The film boasts a stellar 95 percent critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes, earning a "Certified Fresh" label right out of the gate.

Related: Netflix Loses $630M Timothée Chalamet Hit to HBO Max After Just 1 Month