Thea Frodin will make her US Open singles debut Tuesday against Elena Rybakina, the No. 2 player in women’s tennis. The 17-year-old Los Angeles native faces a major challenge, but she has already shown she can hit the ball like Serena Williams — at least on a movie set.
From “King Richard” to the US Open
Frodin served as the body double for Demi Singleton, who played a young Serena Williams in the 2021 film King Richard. On Tuesday, she will return to the court in front of cameras as herself when she takes on Rybakina.
“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.
Competitive tennis helped Frodin reach the US Open. She won the USTA Billie Jean King Girls’ 18s National Championships, earning a wild card into the tournament’s singles field.
Tennis also opened the door to Hollywood. Frodin was competing in California’s 10-and-under division when she won the sectional singles, doubles and mixed doubles titles. She was then invited to audition for the role, which required her to serve as Singleton’s on-court body double.
“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.”
Smith won an Oscar for playing Richard Williams, the father of Venus and Serena Williams.
Frodin found it relatively easy to reproduce Serena Williams’ swings because she was already familiar with them after watching the 23-time Grand Slam singles champion throughout her career. The challenge was returning to her own technique once filming ended.
“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.”
Frodin’s first WTA Tour-level match
Frodin played in the US Open doubles tournament last year but has never met Serena or Venus Williams. Her match against Rybakina will be her first at the WTA Tour level. Earlier this year, she lost in qualifying in Miami in her previous attempt to reach that level.
Frodin has one year remaining in high school and has not decided what she will do afterward. She said she would consider another opportunity in Hollywood if one arises.
“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?”
