A cryptic, since-deleted post from actor Anya Taylor-Joy’s Twitter account triggered excitement among fans of The Queen’s Gambit.
“The Queen’s Gambit 2,” it said simply, prompting fans of the hit Netflix series to go wild at the idea of a looming second season.
However, Taylor-Joy took to Instagram just hours later to confirm that the tweet wasn’t her work.
“My Twitter has been hacked – apologies for all the inconvenience, it’s NOT me,” she wrote early on Tuesday (Australian time).
Tweet from @anyafolders
Furthering The Queen’s Gambit could ‘ruin it’
The series set in the 1950s was wildly popular when it was released on Netflix in 2020.
It follows chess prodigy Beth Harmon, played by Taylor-Joy, who struggles with addiction.
The mini series was critically acclaimed; Taylor-Joy won a Golden Globe and Critics’ Choice Award for the role and the show also won accolades.
Despite its success, those involved in the project rejected the idea of following it with a second season.
Scott Frank, who wrote the adaptation, directed it and served as executive producer told Deadline in 2021 he feared furthering the story would just ruin it.
“I feel like we told the story we wanted to tell, and I worry – let me put it differently – I’m terrified that if we try to tell more, we would ruin what we’ve already told,” he said.
However, Frank, Taylor-Joy and executive producer, William Horberg agreed the three would try to find something new they could work on together in the future.
Hacker scams Anya Taylor-Joy’s followers
Since Taylor-Joy’s account was hijacked, the hacker seems to be scamming her followers, promising them signed merchandise.
The star’s account has gone private, but people who followed it are sharing screenshots of the hacker’s recent tweets.
Posts made from the account, posing as Taylor-Joy, promise MacBooks signed by the actress for $600, plus free shipping.
“First come, first serve basis, and all proceeds will be going to charity,” the hacker wrote.
The hacker also said several signed MacBooks had been sold already, according to one screenshot shared to Twitter.
People have been blocked by Taylor-Joy’s account, most likely for pointing out it is a blatant scam.
Some have called on Twitter to step in and prevent the hacker from scamming people through the actress’ account, which has 300,000 followers.
