Netflix is bargaining for a sexist slip by its writers in the hit series "The Queen of Chess" .
In particular, a sentence pronounced in the last episode during a challenge between the protagonist Beth Harmon and the world champion Vasily Borgov is in the sights: "The only unusual thing about her, in reality, is her sex - says the commentator in one scene. "And this too is not an exception in Russia. There is Nona Gaprindashvili, but she is the women's world champion and has never faced men."
For the lawyers of the 81-year-old former Georgian champion, who sued for defamation, it was a "false statement, as well as being grossly sexist and belittling." After a year, the lawsuit against the streaming giant was dropped after reaching an agreement whose monetary value was not disclosed.Gaprindashvili , female world champion from 1962 to 1978 and the first woman to obtain the title of Grandmaster, had asked for five million dollars in damages.
In reality she had clashed with various male rivals: at least sixty until 1968 , the year in which the series is set. Beaten by the legend of the Georgian chessboard were at least three world champions : the Grand Masters Mikhail Tal, Boris Spassky and Viswanathan Anand. "We are happy that the matter has been resolved," said Alexander Rufus-Isaacs, representing the champion.
Netflix's legal team had invoked the First Amendment "to protect the artistic freedom to introduce the phrase in a series of fiction which, among other things, addressed issues of public interest including the challenges women faced when, in 1960s, they had to compete in the elite world of male dominated chess players. "
Based on the 1983 novel by Walter Tevis and starring Anya Taylor-Joy, "The Chess Queen" has become the most successful limited series for Netflix: it has won two Golden Globes and 11 Emmys and may soon be adapted into a musical.
(Unioneonline / D)