The Queen’s Gambit: Harry Melling and Thomas Brodie-Sangster on Chess Sequences as Action Scenes

With writer-director Scott Frank’s The Queen's Gambit now streaming on Netflix, I recently got to speak with Harry Melling and Thomas Brodie-Sangster about the fantastic limited series.
If you haven’t seen the trailers, The Queen’s Gambit is based on the novel by Watler Tevis and follows Beth Harmon (Anya Taylor-Joy), who was abandoned to a Kentucky orphanage in the late 1950s. While there, she discovers an extraordinary talent for the game of chess, but also becomes addicted to the tranquilizers provided by the state as a sedative for the children. After getting adopted by Alma Wheatley (Marielle Heller), Beth attempts to battle both the struggles of her chemical dependency as well as the misogyny of the male-dominated world of competitive chess. Loaded with great acting, incredible production design, and beautiful cinematography, I loved this series and absolutely recommend checking it out. The Queen’s Gambit also stars Moses Ingram and Bill Camp.
During the interview, Harry Melling and Thomas Brodie-Sangster talked about how the series doesn’t have a typical villain, how they had to prep for the chess sequences like an action scene, the incredible production design and cinematography, and more. In addition, they both revealed the TV series they’d like to guest star on and which movie they’ve seen the most.
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[@rebeccaxia350]

Just realize these two are British. They really nailed the American accent!

[@AntonLFG]

I had ZERO idea they were English until after I finished the series...

[@Jess-T]

Most Brits do it's easy.

[@antonramil2408]

Both of them are really well known. You probably have seen Harry Melling as Dudley in the Harry Potter saga and Thomas Brodie in Maze Runner, as well as many other series/films.

[@claranguyen2738]

The female lead is also British.

[@antonramil2408]

@@claranguyen2738 Born American, then moved to Argentina and then lived and studied in the UK.

[@rhythmkhurana6305]

THOMAS IN STRANGER THINGS WOULD BE ICONIC

[@cineyy]

YESSS OMG

[@BrinkleyGulledge21]

We can only wish ❤️

[@TheClassicMagda]

Yay

[@somewhereinnorthernitaly1983]

YES! I would love to see that! I see him fit in a role like one of Jonathan's friends or a worker in the arcade

[@somewhereinnorthernitaly1983]

@its person I MEAN WHO DOESN'T LOVE STRANGER THINGS?? IT'S AN AMAZING SHOW

[@volgg]

thomas is 30 years old and looks like he hasn't aged a bit.....

[@MartusiaNESSIE]

He should play peter pan

[@Maria-kz2ek]

He is HOW OLD??? HE LOOKS TWELVE

[@yesiambored0308]

@@MartusiaNESSIE I think his older version could play Rick in Rick and Morty(°∀°)b

[@mateo_ferranco]

I'm 15 and he looks younger

[@emmafarrington4098]

He looks 19-24 ngl

[@risdzx]

I SWEAR THOMAS LOOKED LIKE 19 YEARS OLD

[@giulianoaaronfrancoynsfran4858]

He looks even younger than that

[@sophiaroberto3563]

When Thomas said “Empire strikes back” and “stranger things” I wondered how a human being could be even more perfect

[@Clementine3107]

Yessss

[@TheClassicMagda]

I was like ayyyyyy

[@COLINHILLSWIMS]

The Queens Gambit was outstanding. Well done to all involved.

[@theivster1648]

Its Dudley and Newt. Or Dudley and Ferb!

[@lisabelw7782]

Omg I didn‘t know Thomas was Ferb! That‘s crazy because his love interest in Love Actually, Olivia Olson, is Vanessa Doofenschmirtz! Full circle.

[@BrinkleyGulledge21]

Bro that was what I was thinking the whole time I was watching it I like I’m trying to shift to the maze for me because I wanna meet you and skip so he doesn’t die ❤️ 😆 😢

[@shelleyberry378]

Or Dudley and Paul/Sam

[@sofiaa2029]

wait i didn’t even realize that was Dudley holy shit

[@serenav687]

0:20 Thomas’s face lmao he looked like he saw some heavenly thing lmao

[@lockeybilly]

This one hit nicely "Everyone battles their own demons. Everyone struggles with themselves the most more than anyone else and that's the hardest one to combat."

[@thanhvy5673]

I don't know if this is scripted or not but so impressed by this deep answer.

[@rosa5207]

Thomas Brody-Sangster is 30, this man does not age lol

[@emmabaughman9321]

The Queens Gambit is one of the best shows I’ve watched. Both of these actors were amazing and a lot of people appreciate it.

[@vanityfair001]

"There are no villains in this show". I didn't realize it but think it may be the reason most of us love the show. We could watch it and not have to worry about any of the characters intentionally trying to harm or abuse someone.

[@thanhvy5673]

The characters harm themselves, instead.

[@ihsura1]

This is such an interesting interview. And I am kinda distracted by each of them wearing only wearing 1 ear pod.. It looks like they are sharing 1 earpod.

[@The-Rest-of-Us]

They probably were, looks like they were sitting in the same room with some social distance.

[@Nxdxli]

LOL Idk why I was laughing so hard at this 😂

[@shelleyberry378]

@@The-Rest-of-Us that could be a thing tho

[@niibinaba]

What a great interview, he asked some really deep and intelligent questions and even made the actors think about the show in a different way, loved it

[@lisa-wv2qj]

I know this is nothing but I'm so amazed that dudley get to know newt. Like maze runner and harry potter is my fav movies of all times..

[@renansm3077]

me too

[@BrinkleyGulledge21]

Same gurl

[@sachadeelstra3386]

Samee omg

[@anush11011]

omg I couldn’t think of a reason why he looked so familiar but now that you say it 😳🤡how did I not notice that he’s Dudley shame on me

[@asdfghjklqwertyuiop932]

sameeee aaahhhh

[@emmastaub5630]

*I cannot believe that they’re only one YEAR APART!! They both look so young still! Harry is 31 and Thomas is 30!!* 😱😱

[@user-qs6xz1bu6b]

Harry looks 40 and Thomas 13

[@celinejohana6032]

@@user-qs6xz1bu6b Ikr 😁😁 Thomas has been stopped aging

[@EpicAdventuresPH]

Thomas Brodie-Sangster is a male Beth Harmon without the mustache and cowboy hat.

[@noemiecansier8466]

The King and Queen it writes itself. Very clever of the casting director.

[@kkok9666]

It really be like that though

[@TheClassicMagda]

TBS and ATJ look like they could be siblings.

[@EpicAdventuresPH]

@@TheClassicMagda: True.

[@Harrietmjones]

@@TheClassicMagda You’re not the only one to think this! I’ve thought they look alike, actually before this show was even created. I watched something with ATJ in it and she reminded me a little of Sam from Love Actually. 😊

[@jaravangaalen2970]

Thomas Brodie-Sangster is one handsome man

[@shellmcc0414]

Harry & Tom are already so accomplished at such a young age ❤️ fantastic actors

[@timlamiam]

Insane how Sangster doesn't age. You can cast him today as season 3 Jojen Reed and he'd fit just fine

[@stevenanderson7461]

Harry Melling should follow his grandad footsteps and become the next Doctor Who

[@anneneville6255]

I find the resemblance with another doctor who

[@Harrietmjones]

@@anneneville6255 Matt Smith?

[@anneneville6255]

@@Harrietmjones Christopher eccsleton

[@Harrietmjones]

@@anneneville6255 Ahh, okay.

[@saturncommitscrimes]

use me as a “i watched the queens gambit thanks to thomas and i wouldnt have watched it otherwise but i enjoyed it so now im here” button.

[@marys8626]

Can't get over that he's Dudley Dursley :D Really liked Harry Melling in this.

[@RockAddicted7]

Collider has the best interviews with the most interesting questions. Also love the initial "break the ice" questions. Keep up the good work!

[@krishanarani12]

Thomas Brodie sangster my love 😍😂

[@mg2172]

He had some good questions! Props to the interviewer!

[@trae2648]

The newt Jacket whaaaa😭😭😭

[@me7093]

Thomas and Keanu must be drinking from the same youth fountain

[@ayakkumii]

collider's interviews are so interesting. the topics and povs are out-of-the-box, making the interviews feel more profound. thank you so much for interviewing amazing people here! 🙏

[@michaelcutcher8592]

One of the best series I have seen! So well done!

[@BluesFishRico]

Closest to a villain was the Dad who bailed , dropped her in an orphanage and started a new family without her.

[@AJ-rm2vh]

I mean it was the mother who did that, the dad tried to take Beth and be with them

[@Doone226]

@@AJ-rm2vh Yes, but after her mother killed herself he didn't get his daughter. Also, the adopted father that came for the house after doing NOTHING after his wife died.

[@kiksocks12]

Pretty sure the villain was her addiction.

[@mysticalmargaret6105]

Actually, I think the adoptive father was the closest to a villain. He abandoned the family soon after the adoption, didn't bother to claim and bury his wife's body, and tried to take the house back from Beth after he told her that she could have it.

[@bl3313]

The paperwork Deardorff was looking at said "N.K." (not known) for the father. So Alice apparently left the father off the birth certificate. He may have no legal rights, even if he heard of Alice's death (not a sure thing). Alice even denied his fatherhood to him in one of their arguments.

[@Kalbelouz19]

Imagine thomas in stranger things 😭😭😭 omg stonkssss

[@careersmart4382]

Amazing actors and amazing series! They all make you believe that they are real people.

[@momentof.silence]

This interview is so fun, thank you!

[@tayamoskva]

Great talk! Very interesting conversation, the best one so far! Thanks a lot, it was a pleasure to hear from these guys. 💘

[@lauravalentinaburbanogarci904]

this was a great interview!

[@olivesuryohadi4237]

Hello Dudley and Newt

[@risdzx]

I was like when i first saw harry : DUDLEY WHAT ARE YOU DOING HEREE

[@MG-ih6po]

Damn, Thomas is 30??????? He doesn't look a day over 19 dude.

[@mysticalmargaret6105]

He doesn't look a day over 14...

[@kayla.beaker_.3385]

OMG IT’S DUDLEY BUT HE GREW UP TO BE A GOOD PERSON-

[@Len--]

5:57 I feel called out

[@feralgirlhood]

when i see thomas, i see ferb fletcher

[@BrinkleyGulledge21]

Lol when I see him I see NEWTTTT Like maze runner

[@COLINHILLSWIMS]

Loved bmx bandits. Nice call back.

[@sharpaylayug9601]

Thomas likes stranger things Thomas likes stranger things I repeat he likes stranger things I’m screaming

[@bobpevere2456]

Excellent interview.

[@izzatys7037]

The questions are amazing I never really thought it that way. The details of the series make me want to rewatch it again!

[@miaruiz4704]

Thomas’s hair is immaculate 👌

[@Stellaluna88]

I can't believe Harry Melling is the same actor who played Dudley in Harry Potter. Man, I feel old!

[@heystobit9194]

the day Thomas Sangster ages is the day where i’m dead.

[@franzellafontelera6160]

Dudley and Newt!

[@wofhwpxldtn384]

isnt that dursley from harry potter

[@aurum7695]

yep

[@thelostgirl101]

Oh wow, I didn't realize that.

[@omglolgiraffe]

@@thelostgirl101 lost a LOT of weight - i think they almost recast him for the last potter film because dudley was always supposed to be overweight

[@veramorici2751]

Didn’t realize this until reading the comments dammm

[@alexalia2737]

Yes and he's turned into a fine actor! I enjoy his work and he's absolutely brilliant.

[@user-yq4en6tc4d]

it looks like they are on opposite sides of the same room and only had one pair of headphones so they had to share

[@milliefielding5683]

Omg wait it actually does pffttt

[@cineyy]

OMG IMAGINE THOMAS IN STRANGER THINGS I'LL BE DEDDD

[@ligaleja739]

Amazing actors.

[@carlaab5897]

Fun fact : Harry Melling also plays Dudley Dursley in Harry Potter

[@racheldears]

WE NEED THOMAS IN STRANGER THINGS RIGHT NOW

[@newtswife1348]

i just realised the middle one played dudley in harry potter

[@jlovesbread]

0:36 did thomas just say "stranger things"? omggggg i love finn same as thomasssss😍

[@rumademedoit]

they had few accent slip ups in the show nil but they did amazing still!

[@ayyrogue_2880]

Jojen Reed & Dudley Dursley.

[@rifahxo]

supportive kings

[@newtswife1348]

THOMAS’ LITTLE SMILEEEEEE STOP

[@notafailure2138]

I keep seeing them as Newt and Dudley.

[@AnaBeatriz-mw7sp]

Thomas é muito lindo cara 😵💖 a voz dele é linda, ele é lindo ai meu coração

[@hannahclark8696]

Was I the only one that was like: " WAIT..... is that one the actor from harry potter!?" Then looks him up and it is...... WHAT

[@aotulapongen8382]

His hair is beautiful

[@nguyenngocphuonglinh2780]

I can't handle the british atmosphere going around 🥵

[@newtswife1348]

THOMAS YOUR ICONIC. WE LOVE U

[@lizmoss]

i could totally see thomas in stranger things

[@lgwilliamsonjr]

Ya boi Dudley all grown up!

[@psyrmc]

I love their accents 💕

[@Marshall-se9zs]

I knew Harry was British, but not Thomas, damn

[@sebhutchinson4836]

My dads work mate is harry mellings brother

[@ilqar887]

So u can get to meet him

[@Chan-me5wg]

Newt and Dudley This can't be any better

[@sheenaroda3897]

Harry Melling on Harry Potter and Harry on Queen's Gambit

[@checkma8s]

Dudley!!!!

[@Luketc7]

This interviewer is good

[@emilyescritora.]

Thomas 😊💕

[@mysticalmargaret6105]

Thomas still looks about 14 or 15 lol! Good genetics, he'll look young well into his 40s! At first I didn't recognize Harry! He dropped all of his baby pudge since playing Dudley in the Harry Potter films!

[@rvguts]

THOMAS IS SO PRETTY

[@shannonwaipouri1730]

Lol bmx bandits I remember that movie yip very obscure

[@ifbadwhypretty]

When most American actors do bad British accents but British actors can easily pull off an American accent.

[@mysticalmargaret6105]

I think child acting schools in Britain are next level compared to Americans. The British always seem to have a deep pool of talented child actors!

[@tanyaliu4136]

2022 kings gambit with Benny as the main character, i know you want it

[@kayewilde8871]

They're no villains. They're both her lover. In a sense she loved them both.. or at least wanted them. But due to Beth's unprocessed self-hate and issues of abandonment, she was incapable of truly committing. She dumped both guys who wanted her and clung on to her the first man she was attracted to just because she couldn't have him.

[@jadorre]

THOMAS BRODIE SANGSTER IN STRANGERS THINGS. THOMAS IN THE 80’S. THINK ABOUT IT. THINK

[@mxhasina08]

brooooo I swear this is Paul McCartney and Dudley Dursley

[@kateelizabeth5042]

THOMAS NEEDS TO BE IN STRANGER THINGS

[@grace_2077]

Me: scrolling through my recommended Also me: sees this video Also me again: intense coughing up my apple juice People outside: coronaVAHRUs

[@tizzie2636]

I heard cardi b’s voice

[@BluesFishRico]

Good movies love Empire. mine would be Lost Horizon Capra , or Wrath of Khan .* I was a weird idealistic kid *-

[@leannadriennec.gofredo8980]

they say thomas found the fountain of youth, bitch he is the fountain of youth

[@ifbadwhypretty]

Ferb talks

[@edmondson4019]

What a difference a beard makes lol.

[@evabeaver8298]

Thomas can’t be 30

[@musiciansoldlady]

So Harry Really has bad teeth!!

[@bizarro984]

Eles só assistem lixo,que horror

[@xerograv6375]

Fun fact: nobody cares that you think Thomas Brody looks young. Get over it 😑