Romeo Beckham is pivoting from modelling to acting with his turn as a charismatic tennis star in the new French film, Forty Love.
The son of David and Victoria Beckham has modelled for several years for the luxury fashion houses like Saint Laurent, Balenciaga and Burberry.
Now, the 23-year-old is trying his hand at acting, making his debut alongside Paul Kircher (The Animal Kingdom), Guillaume Canet (Sink or Swim) and Benjamin Voisin (The Stranger).
Described as a “sensual coming-of-age story”, Forty Love centres around Sacha Gallo, a tennis superstar who has been training with his father to win a major trophy in Paris.
Romeo - who is feuding with his big brother Brooklyn - plays Sacha’s charismatic new rival, who “challenges everything Sacha thought he understood about competition, ambition and himself”.
In a first look at the upcoming Studiocanal film, he was seen posing alongside French actor Kircher, with the pair looking intensely at each other.
The synopsis reads: “For the first time, he faces an opponent of an entirely different nature - love.
“A force as exhilarating as it is destabilizing - and far more dangerous than anything he has encountered on the court.”
Fans flooded social media with their excitement for the upcoming project, with one writing: “Romeo picking a debut where the rival becomes the love interest is bold casting.”
Another said: “Watching this to see if romeo can sell the moment the match turns personal.”
A third commented: “Beckham energy meeting soft tennis drama is giving unexpected but welcome character arc.”
“From the football pitch to a romance film…. That’s an unexpected career move. Wishing him the best for his acting debut,” someone else penned.
Forty Love is renowned fashion photographer Pierre-Ange Carlotti’s directorial debut.
The film is produced by Hugo Sélignac and Paco de Bary at Chi-Fou-Mi Productions, a Mediawan company. It is co-produced by Studiocanal and Manna Studios.
Sélignac described the film as “sensual, romantic and deeply moving romantic fable and coming-of-age story” about the “demands of high-level sport, and everything that lies beneath the surface … led by outstanding performances”.
The producer, who has had five films world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival and is producing the next Jenna Ortega film Lily May B, added that he he has “long admired [Carlotti’s] work as a photographer”.
“There is a rare tenderness, melancholy and strength in his images, and his move into directing felt like a natural next step to me,” he said.
Romeo’s new acting project comes amid years of tension with his brother Brooklyn.
Brooklyn distanced himself from his family in a scathing statement earlier this year, calling out his “controlling” parents and accusing them of trying to “endlessly ruin” his marriage to Nicola Peltz.
Romeo - who recently “liked” a telling post about Peltz - narrowly avoided a run-in with his sibling at the Met Gala in New York in May, which Brooklyn failed to attend this year.
Romeo attended the prestigious fashion event with Burberry as an ambassador for the brand alongside supermodel Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, who is also an ambassador.
Brooklyn claimed in a social media post in January that he has no intention of reconciling and accusing his parents of having “controlled him for most of his life”.
He claimed relations became strained around the time of his 2022 wedding to Nicola.
Brooklyn accused Victoria of pulling out of making Nicola’s wedding dress at the last minute and danced “inappropriately on him” at the wedding.
While his youngest brother Cruz has reached out to Brooklyn several times on social media amid the rift, Romeo appears to have stayed quiet.
In fact, in February, he appeared to signal his stance on the family drama by liking an Instagram post claiming that Nicola is “the problem”.
The video Romeo appeared to endorse featured an influencer telling her 33,000 followers that Victoria and David were “trying to rescue their son”.
“I take it all back. Nicola is the problem. Victoria and David are trying to rescue their son, I think Nicola forced him to make that statement,” she said, according to The Sun.
“I saw an interview with Victoria, and she was like ‘I’m a girls’ girl, I love girls, that’s why I have the business I have, and you have to be a real a-hole for me not to like you.’
“And I was like ‘oh yeah Nicola’s an a*****e.'”
