Sep 01, 2026, 16:00 IST
At just 17, Thea Frodin is about to walk onto one of the biggest tennis stages in the world — and her opponent is none other than Elena Rybakina, the No. 2 player in women’s tennis.But Frodin isn’t exactly a stranger to the spotlight.Before making her U.S. Open singles debut, the Los Angeles teenager had already played Serena Williams on the big screen — sort of.
When she was in Hollywood
Frodin was the tennis body double for Demi Singleton, who portrayed a young Serena Williams in the 2021 movie “King Richard”, starring Will Smith.The experience took her to a movie set for six months, where she worked alongside major Hollywood actors.“I was on set for six months and I got to be alongside some really cool actors and obviously Will Smith, and just the whole experience was super cool for me,” Frodin said. “And obviously to be able to play the double, or the role of somebody that I look up to and I have always been inspired by was truly, like, a very special experience for me.”But there was one unexpected problem: Frodin became so accustomed to copying Serena’s strokes that she struggled to play with her own technique afterward.“It’s actually funny. After I was done with with the movie, I actually got into the habit of using, or playing with her strokes, and I couldn’t switch back to mine because I was so used to hers,” Frodin said. “So my parents — I mean, obviously it’s a great person to replicate — but my parents were a little bit upset because I was playing like Serena, so it took me a while to get back to my normal technique.”
She is now in the US Open
Now, Frodin gets to create her own tennis story.“I’ve worked so hard to try and get to this level, and to have an opportunity like this is just really special for me,” Frodin said Monday in a phone interview.Her U.S. Open opportunity came after she won the USTA Billie Jean King Girls’ 18s National Championships and earned a wild card.And while tennis remains her priority, Frodin hasn’t ruled out another Hollywood appearance.“Obviously, my No. 1 focus always has been tennis, but I’ve always had this little thought in the back of my mind. I feel like it would be really cool if I could somehow balance both,” Frodin said. “I mean, I loved every second of being in that kind of environment, of that kind of acting life. I enjoy it a lot and yeah, if it’s even possible, I don’t mind having that as a side gig, you know?”
