Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit is gaining an unlikely fan. On Wednesday, HGTV star Ben Napier of Home Town touted his love for the Anya Taylor-Joy-starring series, revealing that after watching it, he was even inspired to start playing chess.
In an Instagram post, Napier teased, “this season on Ben’s Gambit” as he showed off his handcrafted chess board, which he explained he made before ever sitting down to watch the Netflix original series. The Home Town star said he made the chess board for Season 5 of his HGTV series “before I even heard of” the Netflix series. His interest in chess, however, has grown since tuning into the show, with Napier noting, “now I’m obsessed with chess.” He also revealed that Season 5 of Home Town premieres on Jan. 3.
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Napier is far from the only fan of the Netflix original series, which debuted on the streaming platform on Oct. 23. The streamer confirmed in November, just a month after the series’ debut, that The Queen’s Gambit had set a viewership record for a scripted limited series, with 62 million member accounts worldwide watching the series within its first four weeks of release. Typically secret about viewership data, Netflix previously revealed that a view only counts once an account has watched at least 70 percent of the episode or film’s runtime, including the credits.
“I am both delighted and dazed by the response. It’s just all way beyond what any of us could have imagined,” co-creator, showrunner and director Scott Frank said at the time, The Hollywood Reporter reported. “But speaking for my fellow producers and the entire cast and crew of the show, every one of whom made me look better than I actually am, we are most grateful that so many took the time to watch our show. And we all look forward to bringing you our Yahtzee limited series next.”
Based on Walter Tevis’ novel, the seven-episode series follows chess prodigy, Beth Harmon, as she rises to the top of her field while battling addiction and emotional issues. The series takes place in the 1960s and 1950s, and, along with Taylor-Joy, also stars Harry Melling, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, and Marielle Heller. The series has been credited with sparking a surge of interest in chess and sending sales of chess sets soaring, with marketing research company NPD Group reporting that in the first three weeks after its debut, sales of chess sets went up by 87% in the US and sales of books about chess leaped 603%.
The Queen’s Gambit is available for streaming on Netflix. The series has not been renewed for a second season, something that is unlikely given that it is billed as a limited series. Fans can catch Napier on Home Town Season 5 when it premieres on HGTV on Sunday, Jan. 3.
