Characters / The Queen's Gambit

Character page for The Queen's Gambit.

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Elizabeth "Beth" Harmon

"It's an entire world of just 64 squares. I feel safe in it."

Played by: Anya Taylor-Joy, Isla Johnston, Annabeth Kelly (young)

The main character and a chess prodigy. Orphaned at a young age and scarred from Methuen Home's mistreatment, she is depicted as someone with immense anger and passion, which fuels her chess proficiency—and her susceptibility to substance addiction.

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• Adaptation Dye-Job: Beth is brunette in the book, but is redheaded in the show. This serves to highlight her outsider status and helps her stick out. It also emphasizes her personality.
• Adaptational Attractiveness: Beth is described as plain in the book, and played by an unconventionally attractive actress (Anya Taylor-Joy) in the show.
• The Alcoholic: Beth starts drinking in her late teens, courtesy of Alma allowing her to indulge. After losing to Borgov for the first time, she starts going down the slippery slope of alcoholism and takes quite some time—and Jolene's reappearance in her life—for her to abstain completely.
• Ambiguously Bi: It’s unclear whether her fascination with the pretty model Cleo is platonic or something more. As Beth is leaving her hotel room in Paris, we see Cleo sleeping under the covers. And the previous night, they had been drinking... However, as Beth woke up in the tub, fully clothed, it is unclear if anything happened at all or if Cleo simply crashed at Beth's after the night of drinking.
• Attack! Attack! Attack!: Beth's playing style is described as being extremely aggressive and merciless. It usually works well for her since she can intimidate her opponents early, but when she goes up against the methodical, calculating Borgov, it becomes something of a problem. In addition, she tends to develop tunnel vision and doesn't consider certain possibilities once she's gotten a plan in mind.
• Badass Bookworm: Beth can be seen with a book in nearly every episode, especially towards the end. Granted, they're all about chess, but it's this—paired with her innate talent and her closest friends' advice—that finally allows her to defeat Borgov in the finale.
• Break the Haughty: Due to being a Child Prodigy, Beth derides the techniques of those she considers "boring" and refuses to study players whose style doesn't match hers. As expected, this comes back to bite her in the ass once she starts playing people who literally live for chess, such as the Russians.
• Broken Ace: In later episodes, Beth's substance abuse, along with the death of yet another parental figure, starts to get to her. She shows up to tournaments hung-over and seems to just be going through the motions.
• Character Tics: Beth has a few.
  • Whenever she feels confident that she's about to win, she rests her hands on her chin and gives her opponents an unflinching glare. As expected, this makes them more anxious than they already were, which leads to them making more and more desperate moves.
  • Likewise, during the few times that she loses or is about to lose, she tends to rub her neck. She also has a habit of crossing/uncrossing her arms whenever she's nervous.
• Chekhov's Skill: By the time she faces Borgov in Mexico City, Beth has learned enough Russian that she's able to understand the conversation he has with his teammates where they advise him on her strengths and weaknesses.
• Child Prodigy: Beth starts off as one, beating grown men at chess games after relatively little practice, and going so far as to play twelve people at the same time and beating them in an hour and twenty minutes. And all of this at nine years old. Deconstructed in that it doesn't shy away from the downsides of being a prodigy, such as Beth taking her few losses very hard because she's not used to losing, and the social alienation that comes with it as a teenager. The show also makes a point that Beth's status isn't nearly as unique in the chess world as one might think; Borgov, for instance, started playing chess at age four.
• Dark and Troubled Past: After her biological mother's suicide, she was sent to an Orphanage of Fear where they gave her tranquillizers to make her compliant, only for her to become addicted.
• Darkest Hour: Beth hits it in episode 6 after (in turn) losing to Borgov, getting railroaded into buying Alma's house from Allston for more than it's worth, going on a weeks-long drug and alcohol binge, breaking her watch (a graduation gift from Alma), and being confronted by Harry, who forces her to realize she's becoming an addict.
• Deconstructed Character Archetype: Of the Child Prodigy. She is so used to winning at chess that when she does lose, she doesn't take it so well. Furthemore, because she sees chess as her "priority number 1", her social skills leave something to be desired.
• Descent into Addiction: Beth and the "green pills" (i.e. tranquilizers). They are first given to her at the Girls' Home before their use with children is banned by the state. Later, she finds that the woman who adopted her has a prescription for them, so she gains access to more pills. It only gets worse when, while on the road, she develops a taste for alcohol (with help from her adoptive mother, who is also addicted to drinking), which only adds to her problems.
• Disappeared Dad: Both of Beth's legal fathers spurn her. We see that her birth father was rebuffed one too many times by her mentally ill mother and foreswore all contact with her and Beth again. The authorities apparently assume he's dead. Years later, her adopted father Mr. Wheatley abandons his wife and Beth almost immediately after Beth joins the family.
• The Dreaded: Due to her appearing on the tournament scene virtually out of nowhere to beat the highly-regarded Kentucky state champion Harry Beltik, Beth finds that she's gained this reputation at the Cincinnati tournament.
  Beth (holding out her hand): Beth Harmon.
  Man: ... Shit. (starts rearranging the pieces with a This Is Gonna Suck expression on his face)
• Drunken Master: Tranquilizers actually help Beth with her game, allowing her to envision chess pieces on the ceiling and plan moves. Part of her story arc is learning to relax and do this without chemical help.
• Dude Magnet: She doesn't start out as one, but once she starts rising to the top of the chess scene, a group of boys from her school actually stop her in the hallway to ask for her signature. She also has brief, yet meaningful flings with both Beltik and Benny, and Georgi Girev tries to ask her out on a date after she kicks his little butt at chess.
• The Fashionista: Beth grows into one, often wearing chic outfits and expressing envy to Cleo for her job as a model because of the free clothes. It's even mentioned before her Paris match against Borgov that some of her detractors have called her too glamourous for chess, which she shrugs off. Justified in that teenaged Beth didn't really have that many clothes growing up, and was bullied for it at school.
• Fiery Redhead: Beth is pretty stubborn and gets mad easily, though her anger tends to be quiet and pointed rather than big and loud. She also has a very aggressive playing style. Notably, she was a brunette in the book; the creators imagined her as a "feisty redhead".
• First Period Panic: Beth gets her first period just after her match with Townes ends. She initially feels queasy and rushes to the bathroom, only to find blood running down her leg and realize what's happening. Unfortunately, she doesn't have any feminine supplies with her, but her prior opponent Annette shows up and tries to help out by giving her a pad. Beth ends up trashing the pad and running off a length of folded-over toilet paper to lay in her panties because she doesn't know how to use one, and when she goes home, asks her adopted mother to teach her how.
• Functional Addict: Beth becomes addicted to tranquilizers and alcohol, but it almost never affects her playing. In fact, drinking and downing tranquilizers even enables her to "play out" games in her head more clearly. The struggle comes from how this affects her outside her games, as she comes to rely on them for things outside of chess, and they become her go-to ways of coping with any difficulties in her life. In episode 6 her addiction finally overcomes her and she's only saved by the timely intervention of her friend Jolene. Her being able to do it sober during her final match with Borgov is a sign of her Character Development, proving that she doesn't need them to be an excellent chess player.
• The Gift: Her immense talent at chess is apparent from when she first begins playing and everyone around her acknowledges it. Even though she stops playing for a few years, she still has a meteoric rise to the top when she starts again.
• Happily Adopted: Despite a somewhat awkward start, Beth and Alma end up developing a close and loving relationship as mother and daughter. Completely subverted in regards to Allston, however, who is completely indifferent towards Beth when she's first adopted and outright antagonistic towards her as an adult.
• Heel Realization: Beth gets a couple in episode 7.
  • After attending Mr. Shaibel's funeral. Jolene takes her to the orphanage, and when Beth goes into the basement, she finds a board covered with newspaper clippings and magazine articles where he followed her career. Central to this is the snapshot of them together in episode 1, which leads her to break down after realizing that she's lost her mentor and that she never kept in touch with him.
  • When she calls Benny to ask if she can borrow money for the trip to the Moscow Invitational, he angrily calls her out for refusing his offer to stay in New York in favor of going home and drinking herself into a stupor. She's clearly taken aback by this.
• Honor Before Reason: She would rather risk not being able to participate in the world championship than go there under the sponsorship of the Christian Crusade, which would have her advocate against atheists and communists in her speeches.
• I Am Not Pretty: She admits in episode 7 that she has never seen herself as in any way attractive, which Jolene finds unbelievable.
• Insufferable Genius: Downplayed. Beth can be quite haughty and dismissive of others who aren’t as gifted as she is, but she's almost never openly condescending. The few times she is, the target is usually very deserving.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Beth is distant, stubborn, and proud, but a good person who doesn't seem to have any real malicious intent towards anyone.
• Letting Her Hair Down: Beth does this the morning after losing her virginity. When she wakes to find the other inhabitants of the apartment went to see a film (leaving her only a note about where they'd gone, a joint, two cans of beer, and a few eggs), she decides to hang around all day: taking a shower, vacuuming the rugs, and dancing around while dressed in one of the girls' shorts and t-shirts (the first time she's been shown not wearing her regular outfit during the day since episode 2).
• Mad Mathematician: Is said to be quite good at math, and it's her boredom with her lessons which leads her into the basement to meet Mr. Shaibel.
• Meaningful Name: Beth's full name is Elizabeth, which has been the name of two English queens. The Queen is the most powerful figure on the chessboard, and Beth herself is nicknamed by the press as "The Chess Queen".
• Meditation Power Up: When Borgov makes an unexpected move in their final match, startling Beth, she lets out a long breath and shuts her eyes for several seconds to calm and center herself. When she opens her eyes again, she can see the chessboard on the ceiling.
• No Social Skills: Due to her upbringing (both by her mom, who dragged her all over the place when they weren't living in a trailer in the middle of nowhere, and her time in the orphanage) and her status as a prodigy, Beth has a lot of trouble socializing, being rather awkward and blunt in her earlier years, and rather prickly and antisocial in her later ones.
• One of the Boys: Considering how chess used to be viewed as a "male sport" in the 60s and Beth doesn't really fit in with the "regular" crowd, nearly all of her friends are male.
• Plot-Relevant Age-Up: Isla Johnston plays Beth as a young orphan (9 years old) in the first episode, while Anya Taylor-Joy plays her from 15 to 20 (Mrs. Deardorff lied to the Wheatleys that Beth was two years younger, thinking they'd want a younger teenager).
• Significant Wardrobe Shift: Beth, both literally and figuratively. Because her adoptive family is relatively poor as well, Beth starts out the show with drab clothing and an unflattering hairstyle. When she starts winning, her clothes become louder and more colorful. When she spirals into addiction, her clothes become more showy and her make-up more Mod-inspired. When she finally starts taking care of herself again, her dresses are mostly in black or white (or both) to go along with the chess motif. When she finally triumphs over Borgov in the finale, Beth is clad in all white, with her hat even resembling that of a queen's.
• Smart People Play Chess: Played with; Beth is a math and chess genius, but she has serious problems with socializing and because of her history in the orphanage, she doesn't know a lot of the things she should. She often bluntly asks people questions simply because she doesn't know what they are talking about.
• Smoking Is Glamorous: Certainly seems to think so, as she starts not long after her adoptive mother's death and she gets money to spend on her looks. Should also be noted that she isn't seen smoking when her destructive habits catch up to her, implying it's not really part of her downward spiral.
• Sore Loser: Beth never learns to lose gracefully. She typically weeps in the turns leading up to a defeat, and is likely to storm off in a huff.
• Symbol Motif Clothing: In a realistic variant of this trope, Beth wears a lot of checkered patterns, which resonate with her as a chess player.
• Tomboy with a Girly Streak: Beth excels in a male-dominated field, is mostly friends with men, is an aggressive Fiery Redhead, and turns out to have a knack for racquetball, too. The only thing keeping her from being an outright tomboy is her love of fine clothes and makeup.
• Time-Shifted Actor: Anya Taylor-Joy plays Beth when she's a teenager, while Isla Johnston plays her when she's nine and Annabeth Kelly when she's five.
• Tragic Keepsake: Beth has three: the wristwatch Alma gave her as a high school graduation present, a photo of Alma alone, and a photo of Beth at 9 with Mr. Shaibel.
• Tranquil Fury: Beth hardly ever raises her voice. Even while delivering a "The Reason You Suck" Speech to Allston.
• The Unblinking: Beth tends to stare down her opponents in her matches and doesn't blink much. Combine this with a rather flinty resting face, and she comes off as pretty intimidating.
• Unskilled, but Strong: During her earlier years, she relies solely on her immense natural talent to win matches, paying little attention to the more theoretical aspects of the game. She grows out of this quickly and becomes deeply analytical as she develops her playing style.
• Womanchild: Beth gets very upset when things don't go her way, with almost every single incident of it involving her crying or barely holding back tears. She will also always run away from whatever is causing this rather than deal with it head-on as an adult would. She gets somewhat better over the course of the series, at least when it comes to chess.
• Worthy Opponent: To everyone, along with being The Dreaded.
  • Borgov in particular sees Beth as one. In Mexico City, when his aides are disparaging her, he compliments her fighting spirit, and he's disappointed when she underperforms in Paris, having come to expect better from her. During their final match, he offers her a draw, which according to the commentator, he never does. He goes as far as to hug her when she defeats him, which she returns. When they separate, he starts clapping along with the crowd for her.
  • Another man she defeats in Moscow is delighted to lose to her, because he can see how good she is and is honored just to have played a match against her.
• You Go, Girl!: Early in her career, Beth is a little annoyed by how much the media focuses on her achievements because she's a girl in a male-dominated sport, not for the achievements themselves.

Beth's Friends and Family

Alice Harmon

"The strongest person is the person who isn't scared to be alone."

Played by: Chloe Pirrie

Beth's biological mother.

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• Abusive Parents: She got worse over the course of her parenting of Beth. Initially not very healthy towards Beth emotion-wise, instilling within her values that would encourage Beth's social isolation, she also refused to allow Beth's father to help them even when he actively begged to. She later showed up in his life again unannounced begging for help and when this fails, she tries to kill Beth along with herself.
• Mad Mathematician: Young Beth finds her mentally unwell mother's Ph.D. dissertation on abstract algebra. (Which is probably the branch of mathematics that translates most readily to success on the chessboard.)
• Missing Mom: Beth's mom died in a car accident. It's implied that she was trying to commit suicide, since she had been having mental problems and the last words she said to Beth were "Close your eyes."
• Plot-Triggering Death: Beth's mother dies early on, leading to Beth being placed in Methuen and subsequently learning how to play chess.
• Riches to Rags: Beth mentions both her parents came from money. However, Alice and Beth were living in a trailer at the time of the latter's death, implied to be because Alice moved around a lot due to mental health problems.

Mr. Shaibel

"You resign now."

Played by: Bill Camp

The custodian at the Methuen Home and Beth's first chess teacher.

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• Crusty Caretaker: Subverted. He's the custodian at the orphanage and is aloof, gruff, and is harsh with Beth when she first comes down to the basement. However, he's kinder than he lets on.
• Intergenerational Friendship: Downplayed. He (a gruff custodian) and Beth (an emotionally stunted orphan) don't quite form an actual friendship but they find a shared kinship in chess, and remain fond of each other even after they part ways.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's stern, humorless, and hard to approach, but finds himself in awe of Beth's enormous potential and does all he can to stoke and nurture her talent. When she leaves the orphanage and sadly waves him goodbye, he is crestfallen to see her go, but can't bring himself to return the gesture. Years later, he eagerly bankrolls her first tournament when she can't afford the entry fee. Given an even more tragic layer in the final episode, where it's revealed that he was immensely proud of (and invested in) Beth's success, commemorating her career in the place where it all started. Most poignantly, he always kept the awkward photo he had taken of them together, which Beth is moved to tears by and takes home with her after his passing. Beth remained deeply attached to Mr. Shaibel in the years following their separation, and was frustrated that the media didn't seem to care about the impact he had on her life. In the final episode, on top of the world after some of the biggest wins of her life, she rather forcefully encourages them to do so.
• Small Role, Big Impact: He only physically met Beth at the Methuen Home when she was an orphan, but is the one who introduces her to chess and teaches her how to play. He is however mentioned several times throughout the series.

Alma Wheatley

"I believe I can learn to be a mother."

Played by: Marielle Heller

Beth's adoptive mother who takes her out of the orphanage at 15. Initially surprised by Beth's fixation on chess, she becomes her most ardent supporter.

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• The Alcoholic: She drinks a lot to cope with her dissatisfaction with her life.
• Foil:
  • A lot of parallels can be drawn between her and Beth's birth mother, Alice. Alice and Alma excelled in their own fields (piano and mathematics), raised Beth on their own all the while dealing with their own issues. However, it's clear that Alma had a much more positive impact on Beth's life being an imperfect but strong parental figure while Beth still carries a lot of trauma from what her mother tried to do. Even their relationships with Beth's father figures contrast with Alma's husband walking out on her and Beth whilst Alice kept trying to push Beth's biological father out of the picture.
  • She becomes this to Beth in Mexico where she enjoys her life to the fullest in contrast to Beth who is only interested in chess.
• Good Parents: Alma tends to Beth's needs even though she's often sick and depressed, and encourages Beth to socialize even if she finds her chess interest an oddity. As their relationship develops, she becomes very supportive of Beth's playing and is warm and protective while still respecting Beth's autonomy and trusting her on her nights out. Her death hits Beth especially hard.
• Hidden Depths: The first indication that she is more than a drugged-out housewife is that she's an excellent piano player.
• Lady Drunk: Alma is constantly drinking, when she isn't popping tranquilizers at least. She's sad and dissatisfied with life as a mother whose child died and a wife whose marriage failed.
• Only in It for the Money: Alma is initially dismissive of Beth wanting to play chess, but changes her tune when Beth wins the Kentucky State Championship and $100 along with it, and starts taking Beth to tournaments for the prizes. However, as time goes on, she becomes more genuinely supportive and loving of Beth, even noting that chess is much more exciting than she'd thought.
  • Alma knows that she will never fully understand chess, but she attempts to learn as much as possible to help her daught think through concepts. She also notices that her daughter is an "intuitive" player, and does best (and the audience most loves) when she plays intuitively rather playing strategies from a book, and so she encourages her daughter to take time to relax instead of spending all her time studying.
• Open-Minded Parent: Her response to her teenage daughter losing her virginity to a one-night stand with a classmate (bearing in mind this is the 60s)? "Well, at least you're doing things normal teenagers do", and, "Don't get pregnant."
• Outliving One's Offspring: Alma explains to Beth that she never got into performing on the piano because of her stage fright and then getting pregnant. It's clear that the newly adopted Beth is the only child in the house.
  Beth: You have a child?
  Alma: We did, yes.
• Parents as People: Alma clearly has trouble coping with her life but makes the best of it, especially once she begins more actively being a mother to Beth. She accidentally enables and feeds into Beth's problems with addiction, though she does try to stop her and seemingly only doesn't because Beth has difficulty coping in general. Alma loves her dearly and really came through when her husband abandoned them and it was up to her to make sure they'd be able to get by, and is noticeably hurt when Beth insults her life — it's implied this formed something of a rift between them, since afterwards is when she begins sleeping with her pen pal. She's one of the few characters who isn't a Satellite Character.

Jolene

Played by: Moses Ingram

A fellow orphan at Methuen who befriends Beth during her years there.

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• Black Gal on White Guy Drama: She's in a relationship with an older white partner at her firm, which she says doesn't look that great in the era of the Civil Rights Movement.
• Brutal Honesty: She just says what's on her mind.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: She's sometimes rude and hotheaded, but a good person who mellows out significantly as an adult, and is a good and loyal friend to Beth. A lot of her issues as a teen probably stem from the trauma of growing up in an orphanage, especially as a black teenager whose chances at being adopted were basically zero from the word "go."
• Lady Swearsalot: Her first appearance has her calling everyone "fucking cocksuckers".
• Magical Negro: Jolene, Beth's Token Black Friend from the orphanage, shows up again in the last episode while Beth is at her lowest point. Although much is made about how Jolene is disadvantaged at the orphanage, being an older black girl in a setting where couples would prefer to adopt younger white girls, Jolene prevails in the intervening years^note in The '60s, no less! and shows up to bring Beth to Mr. Shaibel's funeral and Methuen. This serves as a wake up call for Beth. Later, when it seems Beth can't afford to go to Moscow, Jolene loans Beth $3000 from her law school fund so Beth can play. Lampshaded when she says she's not here to be Beth's guardian angel or savior. Although Jolene does have goals and agency outside her relationship with Beth, the audience only learns about them when she's talking to Beth.
• Only Friend: Beth's only friend during her time at the orphanage and her only female friend during her entire childhood.
• Token Black Friend: The African-American Jolene's role in the first part of the story is to be Beth's older and supportive friend at the orphanage. Her race is pointed out; as a "colored" girl she is unlikely to be adopted and will be expected to work. She comes back in the end and is the one who ultimately does the most to shake Beth out of her funk and get her to Moscow.

Other Chess Players

D.L. Townes

Played by: Jacob Fortune-Lloyd

An older chess player Beth beats early on and becomes infatuated with, later becoming a photographer.

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• If It's You, It's Okay: Subverted. He's gay, but later admits to Beth that during the early period of their acquaintance, he was "confused" and had a fascination with her due to her talent that he interpreted as attraction, before eventually realizing he was only interested in men and just wanted to be her friend.
• Last-Name Basis: Only ever called by his surname, Townes.
• Nice Guy: A generally pleasant, friendly, and charming man. Even though a miscommunication led to his friendship with Beth dying for a while, he is understanding, forgiving, and supportive when they meet again.
• Number Two: He shows up in Russia during the adjournment of Beth's match with Borgov and assists her with preparing to defeat him, outright telling her to "consider me your second".
• The One That Got Away: Townes for Beth. She was infatuated with him when she was young; long after their awkward encounter in the hotel room, she admits to Cleo that she still carries a torch for him.
• Straight Gay: Revealed to be this in Episode 3, with his boyfriend showing up during his photography session with Beth, much to her surprise and heartbreak.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: Townes is tall, dark-haired, and charming. Coupled with the romantic framing of his interactions with Beth, this does a lot to set him up as her Love Interest.

Harry Beltik

"Anger is a potent spice. A pinch wakes you up, too much dulls your senses."

Played by: Harry Melling

Kentucky State Champion in 1963, his defeat at Beth's hands pushes her into the limelight. When they reconnect some years later, he becomes one of her more thoughtful and grounded friends.

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• Better as Friends: Harry harbors feelings for Beth, but realizes it's not going to work out. They remain friends, though mostly through his efforts.
• Big Brother Mentor: After Beth's loss to Borgov, he meets up with her and helps her develop her chess style beyond her instinctive methods as well as teaching her about philosophy and warning her not to end up like Morphy.
• Defeat Means Friendship: Harry dismisses Beth when they meet at her first chess match, but she beats him soundly. When they see each other again, it's clear this left quite an impression and they develop a solid friendship.
• Graceful Loser: While rude at the start of their match, and seeming rather frustrated upon losing, he happily shakes Beth's hand and concedes.
• Nice Guy: Though he starts off rather cocky and rude, Harry matures into a sweet, patient young man who genuinely cares for Beth and wants to see her happy. Though a romantic relationship doesn't pan out, he continues to check in on her after and makes an extra effort to find and talk to her when she's in the worst throes of addiction. He's also there for her in the finale to help her against Borgov, making Beth tear up.
• Overshadowed by Awesome: With his rating of 2150, Harry is a strong player in his own right, and Townes implies that Harry has the potential to reach the rank of Grandmaster. However, Harry lacks the natural intuition for chess that Child Prodigies like Beth and Benny have and quickly falls behind.
• Soul-Sucking Retail Job: While Beth and Benny are able to make a career out of playing chess due to their proficiency with it, Beltik isn't and so for him it just remains a simple hobby. Instead, he ends up becoming the assistant manager of the local supermarket while studying electrical engineering. Downplayed in that he doesn't seem to mind it.
• Starter Villain: He's arrogant and flippant rather than actually villainous, but Harry Beltik is Beth's first big hurdle, being talked up as the best of the players in her first tournament, and the only one who provides her with a challenge.
• Took a Level in Kindness: He's a bit of a smug jerk in his first appearance. After having his ass kicked by Beth and growing up a little, he's revealed to have matured into a kind, sensitive adult who actually turns out to have probably the most common sense of Beth's friends. He also eagerly helps her with her final chess match against Borgov and is ecstatic when she wins.

Benny Watts

"Set it up, think it out. Your problem is your queen knight."

Played by: Thomas Brodie-Sangster

A fellow chess genius and the US Champion in 1966, he offers Beth both valuable advice on strategy and her first real challenge.

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• Awesome by Analysis: He's quite good at analyzing matches, and is able to point out Beth's flaws as a player and how she actually could have lost her first match with Beltik, something Beth didn't even see until he brought it up. At the time, he'd never even actually played her, just read through her games.
• Badass Longcoat: He spends a good chunk of his screentime in a black leather duster.
• Basement-Dweller: He's something of a subversion of the concept. He's a bit too young and skinny for his over-the-top persona and he literally lives in a basement, so for the modern viewer, he comes off a lot closer to "here's my fedora and katana, m'lady" than to "Old West tough guy". But despite that, he actually fails to tick off about any of the loser traits associated with the trope, and as far as his looks go, he's contrasted with several much purer cases of Geek Physiques.
• Brutal Honesty: He's quite candid in general, and doesn't mince words when pointing out Beth's flaws in the game. He's not shy with positives either, though, openly admitting that she's a better player than him, even before she's ever beat him. He also manages to casually insult a skinny hopeful asking what his advice would be for aspiring players.
  Benny: You know, I'd tell them to get in shape. Most people think about chess players, they think about people who look like you.
• Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Struts around in a duster and a fedora, with a Bowie knife strapped to his leg, apparently trying to project some sort of outlaw cowboy image despite being from NYC. He's a formidable player, though, despite his ridiculous costume.
• Child Prodigy: As an eight-year-old in 1948, he forced a draw against Najdorf, who would be regarded as the second-strongest player under World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik around this time.
• Composite Character: The book character didn't have the renegade fashion style which was lifted from a different unnamed chess player in the book who dressed like a pirate and kept wearing a knife.
• Disc-One Final Boss: Benny is this to Beth as the US Champion at the time. As mentioned throughout his entry here, he's an excellent chess player, but not as good as the leading Russians, and is merely someone she has to go through on her way to beating them.
• Graceful Loser: When Beth finally beats him, he goes out drinking with her after, merely lamenting his loss with a wry smile. When Beth compliments him on how well he's taking it, he cheerfully says he's "raging inwardly".
• Hustler: The evening before his second official match with Beth, he plays speed chess with her for $5 a game and cleans her out. The next day he reveals that he has a lot of experience speed chess hustling in New York and reassures her that it's no knock on her skill, because it's a different skillset than tournament chess. She does end up beating him in the tournament. Later, to show how far she's come, she turns the hustle around on him. She bets $10 a game on simultaneous speed chess against him and two other masters, and wrecks them all.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's not really a jerk per se, but he is brutally blunt with Beth, confident in his abilities to a point of slight arrogance (demonstrated in his interview with the college paper reporter), and deliberately messes with Beth's head before their match. But he's also extremely generous with Beth; he invites her to live with him for a short while, doesn't want her to be alone when she's vulnerable, and offers to go to Russia with her. He also is firm about not wanting to have sex with her after seeing how much she drinks, and notably only has sex with her for the first time at a time when Beth hasn't been drinking, indicating that he cares about her mental state. And, of course, he's ecstatic when she wins.
• Not Distracted by the Sexy: When Beth lets on she's attracted to him, he tells her in no uncertain terms that training with him will not include sex. Later at his apartment, they actually do have sex... then with Beth lying naked next to him, he starts making strategy suggestions regarding her upcoming match with Borgov.
  Beth: This is what you're thinking about right now?
• Older Than They Look: Much like his actor, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, who was nearly 30 when filming but has the boyish looks of a barely-out-of-high-school young adult, Benny is older than he looks as well. While one could easily assume he and Beth are contemporaries of a similar age, being an eight-year-old in 1948, he's roughly eight to nine years older than she is.
• Positive Friend Influence: His mentorship forces Beth to work harder and smarter, and genuinely cares for her welfare and her career. Notably, while she's staying with him in New York, she remains sober, and falls off the wagon when she goes to Paris by herself.
• The Rival: He's the first person to beat Beth in a match, and thus becomes her main rival. Until Borgov enters the scene, anyway.
• Sexual Karma: Benny is probably the healthiest romantic relationship Beth has, being he was able to keep her sober and was respectful to her as a person long before she beat him. He's also shown to be the first person to actually bring her to orgasm during sex, which surprises her to finally know what that even feels like, but indicates that he at least knows what he's doing. The fact that, unlike the college guy or Beltik, Benny was someone she was actually attracted to, naturally helps.
• Sexy Mentor: While not her boss, he's older and more experienced than Beth, and gives her advice from their first meeting. Once she's beaten him in a game, she starts to see him in a more attractive light. He invites her to his apartment in New York to help her train before Paris, although he pointedly states they won't be having sex. They do. Except then he starts talking about chess again as soon they're finished.

Vasily Borgov

Played by: Marcin Dorocinski

The current world champion from the USSR and the person Beth badly wants to beat.

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• The Ace: He's the World Champion and the one player Beth says that she fears. With good reason; he's the only player to beat her twice at tournament level and both defeats are remarked upon by Beth as being from someone simply better than her. It takes all of her skill, plus a little help from Watts, Beltik and her other friends, for her to beat him in their final encounter.
• Boring, but Practical: Beth describes Borgov's playstyle as bureaucratic and unimaginative but also merciless and unflinching.
• Deadpan Snarker: His jokes are funny enough to get laughs out of the reporters at Paris, but he maintains the same bored expression while joking.
• Disappointed in You: He doesn't say a word, but his stony, disapproving stare when Beth turns up late and hungover to a match and plays extremely poorly makes it clear he expected better of her.
• Graceful Loser: His response to Beth defeating him in the end? Give her a big hug before joining the crowd in applauding her.
• Informed Flaw: While Beth regards Borgov as an unimaginative player, Borgov's play against Beth isn't exactly straightforward. In his first game against her, Borgov uses the Rossolimo, an uncommon opening in 1966 as noted by another character. In the third match, Borgov plays the Albin Countergambit, which is a rather risky and aggressive response to the Queen's Gambit. This is justified as Beth only describes Borgov as boring after losing to him.
• Meaningful Name: Borgov's first name is Vasily, the Russian form of the Greek name Basil, meaning "king". As the final obstacle Beth must face, Borgov can be seen as Beth's metaphorical opposing King.
• Mighty Glacier: In contrast to Beth's more aggressive style, Borgov seems to be this, slowly and methodically rolling over his opponents and being particularly skilled in the endgame.
• No Celebrities Were Harmed: Borgov's character combines elements of both Boris Spassky and Anatoly Karpov.
  • Spassky had pretty much owned Bobby Fischer in all of their games against each other. The most Fischer could previously hope for was a few draws against an opponent that he even admitted fearing until their 1972 World Championship match against each other. Beth's fear of Borgov and final victory against him plays out almost identically.
  • Karpov was noted for having an extremely technical and precise style. That style lent to criticisms that it lacked creativity and imagination. But even his fiercest opponents grudgingly admitted that he was always several moves ahead of them, and he had his games locked as wins well before his opponents could even recognize it.
• No-Sell: Beth's chess powers that make her so intimidating for almost every other chess player are of no use to her during her first encounters with Borgov. He meets her legendary stare with an unflinching stare of his own, and not looking the least bit intimidated. Her extremely aggressive style gets smothered by his prophylactic style that prevents any attacking possibilities before she can even start to plan out her attacks.
• The Stoic: He is this most of the time although this is subverted when congratulating Beth on her win over him.
• Villains Out Shopping: Borgov isn't a "villain", per se, but before one of their tournaments, Beth briefly sees him at the zoo with his wife and young son.
• Worthy Opponent: Beth is intimidated by his skills and is desperate to beat him, but clearly respects his abilities and works her butt off to match him.

Other Characters

Helen Deardorff

Played by: Christiane Seidel

The head of the Methuen Home for Girls.

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• Innocently Insensitive: Mrs. Deardorff blithely muses that she'll burn Beth's old outfit, with her name embroidered on it by her mother, right in front of the child. She doesn't seem to realize how traumatizing that is.
• Old Maid: Mrs. Deardorff is approaching middle age when Beth is just a child, but apparently unmarried despite being referred to as "Mrs.". It's implied that the local chess club president offers to take Beth to a "simultaneous" as a pretext for spending time with Deardorff, but Deardorff seems to see through the gambit and sends someone else in her place. By the time Beth sees her again, which would only be about ten years later, Deardorff has become old and hobbled, unlikely to draw any more suitors.

Cleo

Played by: Millie Brady

A model whom Beth becomes acquainted with in New York.

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• Ambiguously Bi: Like Beth. Cleo explicitly liked Benny at one point, but it's more ambiguous if something happened between her and Beth in Paris.
• Brainless Beauty: Discussed; she considers modeling to be rather empty-headed and envies how Beth is making something of her intellect through chess.
• Everyone Looks Sexier if French: A beautiful and alluring young model who is specifically French.
• Modeling is Glamorous: Cleo's a model. Beth is envious of her clothes and she gets to jetset around the world, which is how she shows up in both Paris and New York.
• Toxic Friend Influence: Downplayed; she encourages Beth to go out drinking with her in Paris the night before a match, which ends badly, but she doesn't know Beth well enough to realize she's an alcoholic. She's genuinely friendly and even comes to the match to show her support for her.

Margaret

Played by: Dolores Carbonari

Beth's nemesis in High School.

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• Alpha Bitch: Leader of the Apple Pi(e)s, her Girl Posse. The classic mean girl, she leads the Apple Pi(e)s in bullying and making fun of Beth.
• Conspicuous Consumption: Besides her fancy clothes, she lives in a Kentucky mansion, complete with a black lawn jockey in front.
• The Fashionista: Makes fun of Beth's clothes and appearance when she initially enters the high school.
  Margaret: Have you seen her hair and her shoes?
• Future Loser: Implied. She married her high school boyfriend and had a baby shortly after graduation. When Beth runs into her years later, she has a bag with several bottles of alcohol under her daughter's baby carriage, implying that she is a Lady Drunk. She also appears to be envious of Beth's success and her exciting life traveling as a chess player. Even though only a few years have passed by, she wistfully says her high school days "seem like a million years ago." Could be a victim of Married Too Young.
• Girl Posse: A member of the Apple Pi(e)s, a high school social club for girls, all of whom initially look down on Beth.
• Lady Drunk: Implied by a bag with several bottles of alcohol under her daughter's baby carriage.
• Popular Is Dumb: Her response to Beth knowing what a binomial is:
  Margaret: Great, another fucking brain.
• Pride Before a Fall: In making fun of Beth, she previously said that she "wouldn't be caught dead in a Ben Snyder's," the low end store where Beth's adoptive mother bought her clothes. Beth later runs into her in that very same Ben Snyder's, where she is showing signs of living an Awful Wedded Life.
• Rich Bitch: Comes from a wealthy family that lives in a mansion.