Netflix Settles The Queen's Gambit Lawsuit

Netflix is settling a lawsuit filed by chess master Nona Gaprindashvili alleging that she was defamed by an episode of the streamer's hit series The Queen's Gambit. According to a report from Variety, the case was dismissed on Tuesday with Gaprindashvili's attorney indicating that those involved were "pleased" that it had been resolved, though details of the settlement were not disclosed.

"The parties are pleased that the matter has been resolved," Alexander Rufus-Isaacs, Gaprindashvili's attorney, said.

Last year, Gaprindashvili, who had been a chess master in the Soviet Union in the 1960s, filed suit against Netflix, claiming that a scene in the series defamed her with a false claim that she had "never faced men" during chess events. The scene in question was set in 1968 and, at that time in her career, Gaprindashvili had faced 59 male competitors. In her lawsuit, she deemed the comment "grossly sexist and belittling".

According to Gaprindashvili's suit, "the allegation that Gaprindashvili 'has never faced men' is manifestly false, as well as being grossly sexist and belittling." Gaprindashvili says by 1968, she had gone up against at least 59 men, including 10 grandmasters. "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."

Another bit of misinformation on the series was the fact that Gaprindashvili was referred to as Russian. "Piling on additional insult to injury, Netflix described Gaprindashvili as Russian, despite knowing that she was Georgian, and that Georgians had suffered under Russian domination when part of the Soviet Union, and had been bullied and invaded by Russia thereafter," the suit adds.

Netflix tried to have the case dismissed, countering that the show, being fictitious, was protected by the First Amendment, allowing for some creative license and that the goal of the reference was to "recognize her, not disparage her". However, U.S. District Judge Virginia A. Phillips disagreed and allowed the lawsuit to move forward, noting that the series being a work of fiction did not make it immune to defamation.

"Netflix does not cite, and the Court is not aware, of any cases precluding defamation claims for the portrayal of real persons in otherwise fictional works," Phillips wrote. "The fact that the Series was a fictional work does not insulate Netflix from liability for defamation if all the elements of defamation are otherwise present."

"An average viewer easily could interpret the Line, as Plaintiff contends, as 'disparaging the accomplishments of Plaintiff' and 'carr[ying] the stigma that women bear a badge of inferiority' that fictional American woman Harmon, but not Plaintiff, could overcome," the judge wrote. "At the very least, the line is dismissive of the accomplishments central to Plaintiff's reputation."

The Queen's Gambit is now streaming on Netflix.