Shia LaBeouf as John McEnroe: First pictures from Borg/McEnroe

'[We have] everything in common. Passionate. Perfectionist. Narcissistic'

John McEnroe has always courted controversy (Getty)

The infamous rivalry between tennis player/BBC Wimbledon commentator John McEnroe and Swedish player Björn Borg is being brought to the big screen in Borg/McEnroe.

Playing the hot-headed American sportsman is Shia LaBeouf, the actor best known for his roles in Transformers, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Nymphomaniac, and various bizarre art projects. Borg is being played by Sverrir Gudnason, a Swedish actor.

Now, the first image from the biopic has been released, the actors reenacting one of the sportsmen’s many pre-game, on-court photographs. See below.

Speaking about why he took the role earlier this year, LaBeouf said: “You look for parallels in your life, and I’m lucky because there is a lot here. [We have] everything in common. Passionate. Perfectionist. Narcissistic. I’m a bit of a caricature also.”

While at Cannes Film Festival, he added: “These are extraordinary men in an extraordinary situation under a tremendous amount of pressure who had found a way to create a little hold on that court.

“There’s 30,00 people in the stands, millions watching and there are two dudes. There is something really, romantic. You don’t often see masculine love portrayed honestly. These two men had a whole lot of stuff going on.” Read the full interview here.

Borg/McEnroe hits cinemas next year.