In the series “Queen’s Gambit”, the actress fascinated the world: the similarities with her hero, the tears in the bathroom and the sex scenes.

The 24-year-old actress with huge eyes and expressive lips has created the role of chess virtuoso Beth Harmon on the Netflix series.

“I have never thought about my life and I am sure I will not think that I am beautiful. I don’t think it’s beautiful enough for the movies. Sure, it sounds pretty pathetic and even like an attempt to pay attention, and my boyfriend says people will think I’m angry if I talk things like that, but I find my appearance strange. I never go to the cinema to see my films, I see them before. I think the greatest joy of being is that you don’t have to see your face all the time, ”says the actress.

Anya, whose path to the pinnacle of fame began with the lead role in the screening of Jane Austen’s novel Emma, ​​added: Verses from the movie: “I’m beautiful, smart, and rich.” How absurd. “

Anya began dreaming about the career of an actress at the age of six. While in high school, he said he wanted to play for his mother, a psychologist from Africa and Spain, and his father, a motorboat racer of Scottish and Argentine descent.

Tears in the school bathroom

Getting started was definitely not easy. When she was eight years old, the future star moved with her parents from Buenos Aires to London. In the new house, the girl received a lot of harassment because she did not speak a word of English.

She remembers: “Argentina is so green green, there are many animals. And suddenly I find myself in a big gray city, I don’t know that language. I felt like I was from another planet, I really didn’t feel fit. I was too British to be Argentine, too Argentine to be British, and basically too American to be someone else. The children didn’t understand me, so they didn’t accept me. More than once I was locked in a locker. I spent a lot of time crying in the bathroom at school. I was always a lonely child. I felt rejected, isolated, so in my mind I had the idea of ​​being alone, wrong. It greatly distorts perception, learning to be afraid of unity, being with oneself, so serious problems can arise later, ”thinks the young star.

Fortunately, it didn’t take long for Anya to realize that she fit the fashion world as it is. Walking through a Harrods store in London, the 16-year-old came face to face with modeling agent Sarah Douk, the same S. Douk who had once discovered K. Moss. The next day, the future actress signed a contract with Storm Model Management. It was the girl’s first step towards a dream game.

Anyai was helped a lot by the so-called photographic memory, which means that instead of memorizing lines of text for hours, she reads the script carefully once and remembers it as well as possible. More serious offerings soon followed, including the horror films The Witch in 2015 and Split in 2017. Before her first starring role in Emma, ​​Anya starred in the BBC series Peaky Blinders.

When she received an offer to play Beth in the series “The Queen’s Gambit”, the actress realized at the same moment that this role was for her: of all the roles she had created, Beth appeared to her closest and better understood.

It was like trying to convince the show’s producer, Scott Frank, of that.

“It just came to our notice then. I read that book in an hour and a half. I never lost such a rush, never in my life. I don’t really run, it’s not for me. But I ran into a meeting with the producer in the literal sense of the word. I felt very aware of the protagonist’s sense of loneliness and desire to become meaningful at all costs, her addiction to chess. She is from an environment where everyone she has met has disappointed or abandoned her in a way. or another. She doesn’t trust people, but at the same time she desperately tries to adapt. When I was a child, it was like that in my life, so almost instantly the character of Beth overwhelmed me, “says the actress about her relationship with Beth.

The series, which takes place mainly in the 1970s, tells the story of a lonely orphan, Beth, whose fate led her to become the best chess player in the world, her addiction to alcohol and drugs. Anya says she played Beth’s love of this board game, not only very cool, but also sexy, but never in her life had she tried to sit on a chessboard: “I knew there were figurines. Board. Knowing chess was very interesting, many secrets were revealed to me, it was charming and very interesting. Playing chess, especially rapid chess, was the most interesting part of the shoot. Anything that is intense has the potential to become sexy and influential. I think chess is just that. It’s an activity that people give their all to. ”Additionally, Anya admits that she was very interested in exploring the series character’s sexuality and love affairs.

Fans of the series had the idea that Beth could be a lesbian, a hypothesis that arose when model Cleo, played by Millie Brady, woke up in her bed after a party.

“Sex is basically a pretty funny and uncomfortable thing.”

Beth lost her virginity to her boyfriend so undressed that after the act, as if the situation itself wasn’t embarrassing enough yet, she slapped him over the shoulder of a friend. In an interview, the actress who played Beth admitted, “Sex is basically a pretty funny and uncomfortable thing. When we filmed Beth’s first scene, that pat on the shoulder was my idea. Every time she completes a game of chess, Beth shakes her opponent’s hand. This means that you fold the sheet each time and start over. As if to say, great, you really tried, thanks. “

Anya’s own love affairs weren’t very easy at first, either. The girl is currently in a relationship with celebrity photographer Ben Seed, but has said there was a time when she didn’t have much confidence and knows from personal experience what a “toxic relationship is and what harm they do.”

Since its debut on Netflix on October 23, The Queen’s Gambit has remained one of the most watched. It also shows how Beth’s drug addiction, developed in an orphanage, helps to focus and imagine a chessboard on the ceiling, rehearsing and analyzing the game. Later, the girl is engulfed in a swamp of alcohol.

Here’s what Beth played Anya: “I’m glad Beth’s addiction brought attention to real issues. There’s a reason a person takes the first cup or first sedative tablet. It all starts with that, but soon what you save at first glance starts to hurt and can even kill you. No matter how addictive you are, as soon as the situation gets out of control, you have to choose between quitting or giving up.

Now Anya is waiting for new projects: roles in the sequel “Crazy Max” in Furiosa and in the horror movie “Last Night In Soho”. The girl is happy: having created a leading role, she has gained the courage she wants to fight for herself when necessary.

“Recently, there was a case where a producer started treating me like a little girl, like he didn’t know what he was talking about and what he was doing. So, I sat across from him in the office and even though I was scared because he was physically stronger and could ruin my career, I said, “I’ve starred in more movies than you produced, so I really know what I’m talking about.” says the young actress.

And no matter what you think about her appearance, Anya learns to accept the fact that many people value her beauty very much.

“I try to learn to accept compliments. If someone praises me for looking beautiful today, I try to be happy and thank them, ”says the actress.