Netflix’s Beloved New Series Is On Its Way To Making History

For non-fans or players, chess has never exactly been considered the most exciting thing in the world, which only makes it all the more impressive that The Queen’s Gambit continues to dominate Netflix‘s most-watched list. Hollywood had been trying to get an adaptation of Walter Tevis’ 1983 novel off the ground for years, of course, and over a decade ago, Ellen Page was set to play the lead role of Beth Harmon with Heath Ledger making his directorial debut before the actor’s untimely passing.

Fast forward to 2020, and the project was brought to the screen by Scott Frank, who has plenty of experience developing a fantastic miniseries for Netflix given the widespread acclaim that greeted his eight-episode Western Godless back in 2018. Frank created and executive produced The Queen’s Gambit as well as writing and directing every installment, and based on the reaction so far, the riveting drama looks set to be a heavy awards season favorite.

Not only that, but it’s also well on its way to setting viewership records on the streaming service, having remained the single most popular series on the platform for 23 consecutive days, matching the tally of Emily in Paris, and The Queen’s Gambit is now only 7 days behind The Umbrella Academy‘s 2020 winning streak. Unfortunately, though, the chances of remaining in first position for another full week are slim given that season 4 of The Crown has just arrived.

Whether it breaks the Netflix record or not, The Queen’s Gambit will nonetheless be considered among the best shows of 2020, turning chess into one of the most gripping things to be found on the small screen this year and continuing 24 year-old Anya Taylor-Joy’s unstoppable rise to the top of the A-list.