Emma Stone as Billie King looking ready in the Battle of the SexesImage via Searchlight Pictures
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Rob London
Published 10 minutes ago
A cinematic obsessive with the filmic palate of a starving raccoon, Rob London will watch pretty much anything once. With a mind like a steel trap, he's an endless fount of movie and TV trivia, borne from a misspent youth of watching monster movies on TV, perusing the sun-faded goods at the local video rental shop, and staining his fingers with ink from the Video Movie Guide. Areas of interest include science fiction, film noir, horror flicks, '70s disaster pictures, Bond movies, '90s action, giant robots, dinosaurs, super heroes, and the exuberantly schlocky output of Cannon Films. He also enjoys both Star Trek and Star Wars when they're good, and maybe even more when they're bad. As a Canadian, he also has a vested interest in Canadian movies and TV shows, especially the cheesier ones dubbed "Canuxploitation."
An expert on Marvel Comics, he has also written for the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, and is a member of the Marvel Research Team. He can frequently be found pontificating on comic-book continuity or bemoaning the misfortunes of the Toronto Maple Leafs on his Twitter account.
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With Emma Stone in the awards conversation again for her performance in Yorgos Lanthimos' Bugonia, one of her most underrated films is headed to a new streaming home. HBO Max is serving up Battle of the Sexes, in which Stone played trailblazing women's tennis player Billie Jean King. It will be available to stream starting on December 1, 2025.
Battle of the Sexes was directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, the directing duo behind Little Miss Sunshine, from a script by The Full Monty's Simon Beaufoy. It dramatizes a real-life tennis match between top-ranked women's tennis player King and veteran men's player Bobby Riggs that captured America's imagination in 1973. In real life, despite their on-court rivalry and the back-and-forth sniping in the press, Riggs and King became friends, remaining close until his death in 1995. Battle of the Sexes wasn't the first time the on-court battle between Riggs and King was dramatized for the screen: Holly Hunter and Ron Silver starred in the made-for-ABC movie When Billie Beat Bobby in 1996, netting Hunter an Emmy nomination.
What Is 'Battle of the Sexes' About?
In 1970, female tennis players were paid a mere fraction of the prize money as men, despite matching them in ticket sales. Frustrated, Billie Jean King (Stone) organizes a successful tour of her own, bringing in several top women's players with her. Her marriage to Larry (Austin Riggs) is starting to fracture as she starts an affair with her hairdresser, Marilyn Barnett (Andrea Riseborough). Meanwhile, over-the-hill tennis pro Bobby Riggs (Steve Carell, who had starred alongside Stone in Crazy Stupid Love several years earlier) has a serious gambling problem, which is straining his own marriage to Priscilla (Elisabeth Shue). Needing a win, the chauvinistic and publicity-hungry Riggs challenges King to a match; while she declines, her rival, Margaret Court (Jessica McNamee), takes up the challenge and loses, badly. Motivated by Court's loss, King agrees to Riggs' terms, and prepares for a grueling ordeal against the obnoxious-but-talented Riggs and the media circus that will accompany it.
Battle of the Sexes was critically acclaimed, especially for Stone's performance; it holds an 84% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. However, it was a box office disappointment, earning $18 million USD on a $25 million budget. The film also stars Bill Pullman, Sarah Silverman, Alan Cumming, Lewis Pullman, and Natalie Morales.
Battle of the Sexes will stream on HBO Max starting on December 1, 2025. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.
Battle of the Sexes
Like Follow Followed 12A Drama Comedy History Release Date September 22, 2017 Runtime 121 minutes Director Jonathan Dayton, Valerie FarisCast
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Steve Carell
Bobby Riggs
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Emma Stone
Billie Jean King
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Andrea Riseborough
Marilyn Barnett
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Sarah Silverman
Gladys Heldman
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Battle of the Sexes
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Emma Stone
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