Romeo Beckham makes his acting debut in the French film Forty Love, playing a charismatic tennis rival whose fierce competition with Paul Kircher’s character develops into a same-sex romance.
A trailer released on Thursday shows Beckham exchanging flirtatious threats with Sacha Gallo, a tennis star preparing with his father to win a major trophy in Paris.
“It’s not my fault if you’re f*****g in love with me,” Beckham tells his rival in one scene. During another tense match, he warns him: “Sleep with your eyes open, I’m coming for you.”
The trailer also features the pair lying together in bed under red lighting, as their relationship moves beyond the tennis court and into a darker, more complicated direction.
In one unsettling sequence, Beckham is shown unconscious as Sacha drags him into a hotel room. He is later seen lying on the court while Sacha appears to eat his bloodied organs over his lifeless body, before saying: “I think I killed him!”
Beckham also taunts his rival, telling him: “You know, everyone does say you’re boring, and I think they’re right.”
While Kircher’s character speaks French, Beckham’s dialogue is in English. The 24-year-old also draws on his own sporting experience in the tennis scenes.
Beckham played football when he was younger before taking up tennis at the age of 12. His coach at the time described his skills as “extraordinary”, although he eventually chose not to pursue a professional career in the sport and moved into modelling.
His girlfriend Kim Turnbull showed her support by liking the trailer after it was released.
Forty Love explores desire, competition and identity
The film’s synopsis describes Sacha’s arrival at a crucial stage in his career, when he encounters an opponent “of an entirely different nature – love”. It calls that force “as exhilarating as it is destabilising – and far more dangerous than anything he has encountered on the court”.
Forty Love is described as a romantic coming-of-age story exploring the demands of elite sport and what lies beneath its surface. Its producers say the film combines tenderness, melancholy and strength.
The film is directed by fashion photographer Pierre-Ange Carlotti, produced by Hugo Selignac’s Chi-Fou-Mi Productions and co-produced by Studiocanal.
It also stars Guillaume Canet, Benjamin Voisin and Catherine Deneuve, and is due to be released in French cinemas on November 25. International release dates have not yet been confirmed.
The project is Beckham’s first acting role following several years as a model for luxury brands including Yves Saint Laurent and Balenciaga. He has also been a long-time Burberry muse, appearing at Balenciaga’s spring/summer 2025 show in Paris in October 2024 before making a surprise appearance at Versace’s autumn/winter 2025 show during Milan Fashion Week.
