A chess legend is suing Netflix for $5 million over its "sexist" Queen's Gambit portrayal of her.
Nona Gaprindashvili, a chess champion from Georgia, has decided to sue the streaming service for incorrectly portraying her character in the 2020 series, BBC News reports.
The lawsuit specifically centers around the claim that she never played competitive chess against men, but states that, in reality, the now-80-year-old had actually competed against 59 male players by 1968.
In the final episode, an announcer can be heard talking about Anya Taylor-Joy's character of Beth, saying: "The only unusual thing about her, really, is her sex, and even that’s not unique in Russia."
The camera then pans to a woman watching the match, and the announcer states: "There’s Nona Gaprindashvili, but she’s the female world champion and has never faced men."
Despite saying that the claim had "no merit", Netflix asserted that they had "only the utmost respect" for Gaprindashvili and her "illustrious career", however, it would "vigorously defend the case" against them.
Netflix based The Queen's Gambit on the 1983 novel by Walter Tevis, which centers around a fictional chess player, Beth Harmon (Taylor-Joy), and it was so successful on the streaming platform that it was described as its "biggest limited scripted series ever".
Filed in the Federal District Court in Los Angeles on Thursday (September 16), the 25-page case read:
"Netflix brazenly and deliberately lied about Gaprindashvili's achievements for the cheap and cynical purpose of 'heightening the drama' by making it appear that its fictional hero had managed to do what no other woman, including Gaprindashvili, had done."
It added: "The allegation that Gaprindashvili 'has never faced men' is manifestly false, as well as being grossly sexist and belittling."
Gaprindashvili started her chess career when she was just 13, the lawsuit stated, and rose through the ranks to become the female World Championship at 20.
The lawsuit states that by 1968, Gaprindashvili "had competed against at least 59 male chess players (28 of them simultaneously in one game), including at least 10 Grandmasters of that time."
The chess champion is now seeking $5 million in compensation from Netflix and is asking the platform to remove the statement that she never played professional chess against men.