Understandably, a humble chess show represented somewhat of an unexpected triumph when it usurped the usual thrills, spills and car chases, of commercial TV and became one of Netflix’s biggest ever hits. The surprise nature of the sensational success has even left the show’s star, Anya Taylor-Joy, a little lost for words.
Speaking to Vanity Fair regarding the mini-series, the actress, who played chess prodigy Beth Harmon in the 1960s period drama, reflected on the barnstorming success of the show since it hit the streaming service a year ago.
For Taylor-Joy the whole thing is yet to sink in, “I think I’ll probably understand this year in about five years,” she explained. “I think that’s when it will probably hit.”
The star has previously commented about how she identified with the lead character in Walter Travis’ novel as soon as she read it and this was a point that she illuminated even further, “The second I closed the book, it was this dawning of, ‘I’m going to have to give this character so much of myself in order to tell the story right.’”
The success of the show has been measurable by the fact that it not only rose to the top of Netflix viewings list but also caused a spike in people playing chess.
“We used to joke on set that we were bringing sexy back to chess,” Taylor-Joy explained. “We didn’t really think that that’s what people would actually think. I don’t think you can be an even kind of sane person and be walking around, like, I have reinvigorated the game of chess!”
For those who didn’t catch the show you check out a trailer, below.
