Apple TV+'s pickleball comedy "The Dink" arrives on 24 July, and The Hollywood Reporter enlisted a PPR-certified pickleball instructor to judge how authentically the film portrays the sport. The film, produced by Ben Stiller and directed by Josh Greenbaum, stars Jake Johnson as a former tennis prodigy who takes up pickleball, with Mary Steenburgen and Aaron Chen in supporting roles. The review matters because the sport has surged in popularity in recent years, and the film taps into a genuine cultural rivalry between tennis purists and pickleball newcomers.

Writer Sean Clements based the story partly on his own experience of switching from tennis to pickleball after age-related injuries, drawn to its gentler entry point. The article notes pickleball's participation has grown by over 300 percent in recent years, thanks to cheap equipment, smaller courts and a welcoming community, though this has bred friction with tennis players who view it as a lesser game. The reviewer confirms that a scene showing Johnson's character being thrashed and trash-talked by older women on court is realistic, corroborated by similar real-life experiences recounted by Johnson, Clements and Greenbaum.