When Josh Bennett answered an advert seeking extras for a table tennis film, little could he have imagined the whirlwind journey that led to him sharing the screen with Hollywood icons Timothee Chalamet and Gwyneth Paltrow.

Josh responded to the advert on the Table Tennis England website in August 2024, leading to an impromptu virtual audition while sitting on his bed. He was cast in a small role and within a couple of weeks was rehearsing in New York ahead of filming later last year.

The 1950s-set film sees Chalamet play Marty Mauser, a character loosely based on the life of and career of American table tennis ace Marty Reisman, and is already racking up award nominations, including in best picture, actor and screenplay categories at the Golden Globes.

Chalamet reportedly spent six years training for the role so that his table tennis skills would look authentic, though Josh was able to share a few tips and tricks on set.

We caught up with Josh, who is currently ranked No 14 in England, to talk to him about an experience he calls “surreal but very cool”.

“It came out of nowhere, really,” he says. “I put my name down for a background table tennis player, filled out the form, had to do a little video of myself and describe myself. And then literally within 24 hours, I heard back from the casting agents and they said ‘right, we want to fast track you to potentially be in this role’.

“I had to do a bit of acting behind my own camera. I was just sat in bed and they gave me a scenario that I had to act out, which for me was obviously very strange.

“Then, days after that, it’s like ‘right, you’re in, we need you to come to New York for these dates’. It was just an absolute whirlwind.”

Josh, who is 26 and plays in the British Clubs League Premier Division for BATTS, works for Jaguar Land Rover as an ergonomics specialist and says the company has been very supportive.

He did not have any previous acting experience, but he said the cast and crew put him at ease. No spoilers here, but he even ended up with a line of dialogue and was listed in the closing credits.

“I did meet Timothée Chalamet as well, which is very cool, and got to play with him,” he says. “Maybe to my surprise, he had been playing for a long time. He got himself to a good level, which hopefully everyone will see in the film.

“The whole experience was pretty surreal, meeting the directors (Josh Safdie and Ronald Bronstein) as well, and I saw Gwyneth Paltrow from afar, which was cool. Everybody made you feel so welcome. Timothee himself was a really nice guy. Before you know it, you just feel really comfortable in that scenario.”

As well as Josh, movie-goers will also spot European table tennis legend Timo Boll on screen. No more plot spoilers here, but Josh says of the film: “Obviously I’m going to be biased because I’m in it, but I think it was fantastic. It’s one of those when you’re really on edge watching it, high intensity – it’s the best film I’ve seen in 2025. I hope everyone loves it.”