Netflix has released the teaser for its upcoming documentary, Untold: Chess Mates, sparking widespread reactions across the chess world less than a month before its full release.
The 71-second clip, released on March 10, gives a first preview of the new film covering the controversy between GMs Magnus Carlsen and Hans Niemann following the 2022 Sinquefield Cup in St. Louis, an episode that rocked the chess world and made headlines globally.
The documentary is scheduled for release on April 7. The teaser has already racked up more than 400,000 views.
“My entire life and career have been destroyed,” Niemann says in the trailer. “I’ll have to live with the fact that every conversation I have about chess, we’ll eventually discuss anal beads.”
I’ll have to live with the fact that every conversation I have about chess, we’ll eventually discuss anal beads.
—Hans Niemann
Carlsen also appears in the teaser, recalling his reaction during the controversy. “I felt that I was not playing a human.”
“He’s entered a level of paranoia that is not sane,” Niemann adds.
Carlsen has yet to comment publicly on the trailer. Niemann, however, posted several tweets in the days following the announcement, beginning with one promoting the documentary.
The truth, reckoning, and revolution is upon us. Netflix April 7th! pic.twitter.com/pNqt0omqRA
— Hans Niemann (@HansMokeNiemann) February 24, 2026
Niemann competed in the 2026 Prague Chess Festival Masters from February 25 to March 6, scoring 4/9 and finishing eighth among the 10 players.
He later followed up with this quote, which he also gave in the documentary.
Everyone’s day of judgement comes.
— Hans Niemann (@HansMokeNiemann) March 12, 2026
On Friday, he posted a longer tweet addressing what he described as misinformation about the Sinquefield Cup. He also referenced Carlsen’s appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast, where the Norwegian discussed his controversy publicly for the first time.
The 22-year-old said he wants to “set the record straight,” and announced plans to go on a podcast tour to share his version of the events. “Given how extensively Rogan has talked about it, I believe it’s especially important that I have the opportunity to go on his podcast and address it directly,” he said.
There has been a lot of misinformation about what happened at the Sinquefield Cup and the events that followed.
Because of the upcoming Netflix documentary, there were limits to what I could publicly say until now. With the documentary about to be released, it’s time to set the…
— Hans Niemann (@HansMokeNiemann) March 13, 2026
The teaser also sparked discussions online, such as in a Reddit thread with more than 130 comments. Here, reactions were mixed. Some users expressed curiosity about how the documentary will portray Niemann, particularly whether it will show the more combative version of the grandmaster that emerged during the height of the controversy in 2023–24.
One commenter wrote:
I’m interested to see how it pans out. This isn’t the reformed 2025 Hans. This is 2024 Hans. This is wrecking the hotel room Hans. This is attacking Levy during the speed chess interview Hans. I wonder if we’ll get full unhinged Hans, or if he had his lawyer behind the camera to rein him in a little. From the trailer it looks like maybe a little bit of both.
Others questioned whether the film might feel outdated given how the story has evolved since it was shot in 2024. Several users also expressed skepticism as to whether the documentary will reveal any new information about the scandal.
Still, some commenters said they were excited for the release:
Cannot wait to see them. I waited way too long for the likes of Queen’s Gambit, Queen of Chess and this Chess Mates shows. Growing up in a small town – me being a chess enthusiast did not win me many friends. I lost count the number of time school bullies swiped the piece off the board while I was playing. As usual, teachers were of no use.
Others were more skeptical, such as the renowned author and coach GM Jacob Aagaard, who shared a sarcastic tweet:
This looks like a feel good film that will make us all hug it out… https://t.co/leFLdHw0mq
— GM Jacob Aagaard (@GMJacobAagaard) March 11, 2026
GM Hikaru Nakamura, Chess.com’s CEO Erik Allebest and Chief Chess Officer IM Danny Rensch also appear in the documentary, offering their perspective on the role Chess.com played during the controversy.
The two released a video reacting to the teaser.
“Wow. Wow,” was Rensch’s first reaction after watching the clip.
It’s interesting to see how they are framing our side of the story. Mostly through the lens to ‘These people are buying complete control of the chess world’. That’s surprising, not to hear that from Hans, but definitely as a major hook to the episode. That’s going to be fascinating.
Allebest noted he was surprised to see how the story is framed:
The fact that this cheating story in some way turned into a power struggle story, and not purely what it was in my mind, which was ‘Did Hans Niemann cheat in a chess game or not?’ The fact that it got bigger than that, is actually surprising to me.
Untold: Chess Mates is Netflix’s second chess-related documentary of 2026. In February, the streaming giant, with more than 300 million subscribers worldwide, released Queen of Chess, documenting the incredible rise of GM Judit Polgar, the greatest female player in history. The documentary became a hit, reaching Netflix’s global Top 10 list of most-watched films.
The Netflix documentary is unlikely to be the final word on the controversy. In June, American author Ben Mezrich—best known for The Accidental Billionaires, the book that inspired the film The Social Network—will release a new book titled Checkmate: Genius, Lies, Ambition, and the Biggest Scandal in Chess.
Watch the doc, then read the book. Checkmate, my new one about the Magnus Carlsen Hans Niemann scandal is out June 2! https://t.co/7etjSGGHcM pic.twitter.com/3VUb1qamS4
— Ben Mezrich (@benmezrich) March 11, 2026
The saga is also set to reach Hollywood, with a feature film adaptation currently in development by the production company A24. The project, produced by Oscar winner Emma Stone and directed by Nathan Fielder, does not yet have a release date.