World chess champion Nona Gaprindashvili, who was the first woman to achieve the title of Grandmaster awarded by the International Chess Federation, has sued Netflix due to a comment referring to her during the last episode of the series. Lady’s gambit (Scott Frank, 2020). The series, starring Anya Taylor-Joy as Beth Harmon, tells the story of how a girl becomes the best chess player in the world.
In the fictional story, Lady’s gambit describes a universe dominated by men. This is not far from the truth. However, Nona Gaprindashvili disagrees with one of the comments made during the last episode of the series. That is why he decided to sue Netflix. The line in question is this: “The only thing unusual about her, really, is her sex. And even that is not unique in Russia. There is Nona Gaprindashvili, but she is the women’s world champion and has never faced men”.
Nona Gaprindashvili rejects that comment as false and sexist. Lady’s gambit, one of the most successful series in Netflix history, is set in the middle of the last century. The protagonist, Beth Harmon, is an American who ends up becoming a world champion in Moscow in the middle of the Cold War. Gaprindashvili is opposed to the idea posed by production.
What is Nona Gaprindashvili’s complaint against Netflix and Lady’s Gambit?
The last episode, titled “Final”, raised the idea that no other woman had faced men. However, Nona Gaprindashvili alleges in her lawsuit that, during 1968, when the chapter was recreated in Lady’s Gambit, she had already competed against 59 men, at least, including 10 who were considered great teachers within the discipline.
In the complaint, according to information reflected by The Hollywood Reporter, “Netflix blatantly and deliberately lied about Gaprindashvili’s accomplishments for the cheap and cynical purpose of ‘enhancing the drama’ by making it appear that their fictional hero had managed to do what no other woman, including Gaprindashvili, had done.” The lawsuit’s comment does not end there:
Adding an additional insult to injury, Netflix described Gaprindashvili as Russian, despite knowing that she was Georgian and that Georgians had suffered under Russian rule when they were part of the Soviet Union and have been bullied thereafter. and invaded by Russia ”.
What does the chess player claim as compensation for what she describes as damages? Five million dollars in actual damages and another in punitive damages. Added to this is the request for a court order to suppress in Lady’s Gambit the comment that he never faced men during his chess career.
The demand It is formalized in the state of California, in the United States. The Hollywood Reporter consulted company spokespersons. To the lawsuit, the company’s response is: “Netflix has only the utmost respect for Ms. Gaprindashvili and her illustrious career, but we believe this claim is without merit and we will vigorously defend the case.”
