Claim: An actor with American citizenship stars in Pawn Sacrifice.

Pawn Sacrifice is a 2014 American biographical drama film . It is based on the true story of Bobby Fischer 's challenge against top Soviet chess grandmasters during the Cold War and culminating in the 1972 World Chess Championship match versus Boris Spassky in Reykjavík , Iceland . It was directed by Edward Zwick and written by Steven Knight . The film stars Tobey Maguire as Bobby Fischer , Liev Schreiber as Boris Spassky , Lily Rabe as Joan Fischer , and Peter Sarsgaard as William Lombardy . It was released in the United States on September 16 , 2015 .