In Challengers, Zendaya plays tennis-phenomenon-turned-coach Tashi Duncan to stone-cold perfection. Tashi is a woman who settles for nothing but the best, an attitude conveyed in her adulthood scenes through a dripped-out Loewe wardrobe and a blonde power bob. Her winner-takes-all mindset also manifests in her skincare routine—judging by a cameo of Augustinus Bader's cult-favorite body cream in the film.
During scenes in her luxury hotel suite with her husband, Art Donaldson (played by Mike Faist), Tashi lounges in a silk slip and moisturizes the scar from her career-ending knee injury with a thick cream from a bronze-lidded jar. The camera lingers long enough on the container's nightstand for skincare obsessives to clock the label that made it.
If any body cream could be recognized from a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo, it's Augustinus Bader's. Since its launch in 2016, the skincare brand has developed a loyal, beauty-insider-filled following. Its products come with high price tags and proven results: A Marie Claire review of the facial version calls it a "skincare nerd’s dream," because of its science-backed strengthening and hydrating effects. When celebrities drop their skincare routines, at least one blue-and-bronze Augustinus Bader bottle appears on the list.
Shortly after Challengers' release, Augustinus Bader shared a TikTok of a tennis player moisturizing her knees with its body cream on the court. The caption: "Zendaya knows."
"I knew that tub of body cream from anywhere," one TikTok user responded. "I feel like this is 100 percent Zendaya's doing," another wrote. "She is a producer on the film and no doubt knew Tashi would use the most luxurious products."
Then there were viewers who saw Tashi's routine and wanted a piece for themselves: "She really sold me because I haven't tried the body cream yet."
@augustinusbader ♬ original sound - Challengers Movie
Even if the hydrating cream's cameo inspired viewers to shop, it wasn't intended to. The brand confirmed in its TikTok comments that it didn't pay to play in Zendaya's onscreen skincare lineup. In fact, director Luca Guadagnino and his team handpicked the brand for Tashi's nightstand for what it could symbolize.
All the items in Tashi Duncan's grown-up wardrobe and beauty routine serve a narrative purpose. Challengers production designer Merissa Lombardo told Bloomberg that the labels the character associates with as an adult—from her Augustinus Bader skincare to her Chanel espadrilles—represent her transformation into a 360-degree powerhouse with paychecks to match. In high school, her family relies on her endorsement deals; as an adult, Tashi can pack a $190 tub of moisturizer for her suite at the Ritz. She could have bought an entirely separate one to travel with with her wealth.
“I think the clever thing we did, I hope, is try to selectively pick which brands we were using and have a nice mix," the production designer said.
Where Tashi's beauty is concerned, it doesn't get more luxurious than her "rich" creams.
