Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross had previously worked with director Luca Guadagnino, scoring Guadagnino’s 2022 film Bones and All.[1] Guadagnino approached the pair to score Challengers by sending them an email that read, “Do you want to be on my next film? It’s going to be super sexy.”[2] Guadagnino wanted “very loud techno music” for the film,[3] taking inspiration from Berlin techno and ’90s rave music.[2] The end result was intended to amplify the pace and high-stakes nature of the film.[4]
Challengers (soundtrack) by Wikipedia
It is not very often that a soundtrack not only stands out, but rises above a movie, but this is one of them. The choice of music, slightly over-mixed, helped build the tension of the film. I thought that Atticus Ross captured it well in their acceptance speech for the Golden Globes, “we always thought we’d get the call to turn it down”:
Ross did give a short speech: βThis really means a lot, particularly in this special moment. First Iβd like to thank my best friend, my musical partner, the great Trent Reznor. The music never felt like a safe choice, but it always felt like the right one. Iβd like to thank the maestro, the visionary director, our friend Luca Guadagnino.β¦ To be honest, we always thought weβd get the call βCan you just turn it down a little?β But it never came, and here we are.β
Source: Nine Inch Nailsβ Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross Win Best Original Score at Golden Globes 2025 for Challengers by Nina Corcoran