What Movies and TV Get Wrong About Poker (And What They Get Right)

From larger-than-life bets to over-the-top bluffs, poker in movies and TV shows can be a real thrill to watch… until you know a thing or two about the game, that is.

The truth is that real-life poker isn’t what the movies make it out to be — but that doesn’t mean it’s not thrilling.

What Hollywood Poker Gets Wrong

We get it: movies and TV aren’t real life. They’re trying to get audiences excited and invested in poker games, which sometimes means taking a few (or more) liberties here and there. Here are some of the most prolific on-screen poker myths:

Obvious Tells

Heavy sweating, finger tapping, nervous laughter — Hollywood poker is riddled with blatant physical tells that anyone could be spotted a mile away. Take the 2006 Bond film Casino Royale as an example. While facing the villainous Le Chiffre, 007 easily picks up on his opponent’s tell: pressing two fingers to the edge of his brow whenever he bluffs. Of course, Le Chiffre quickly realises that Bond is onto him and uses it to deceive Bond in a later game.

These exaggerated tells are great for on-screen drama, but in real life, most tells aren’t as easy to detect. In fact, it’s less common that someone’s tell is a physical reaction—you’re more likely to spot something given how another player’s behaviour changes based on their betting or position.

All In, All The Time

If TV shows and movies were any indication of reality, going all in would be an incredibly common poker strategy. From Casino Royale to Rounders to Friends, it seems like on-screen players are constantly putting all their chips on the line.

As exciting as these moments might be for the audience at home, they don’t happen half as often real life. Going all in is an extremely risk play from multiple standpoints; you’re not just putting your entire bankroll on the line, you’re also potentially scaring off risk-averse players early in the round—but it sure makes for an exciting scene.

Poor Etiquette

Bad poker etiquette is everywhere in TV and movies. But the idea that it would ever be accepted in real life is one of the media’s great poker myths. In reality, poker is a game that demands restraint, composure, and consideration for your opponents. Casinos — both online and traditional — have strict rules and regulations around how players conduct themselves, which are often omitted on screen.

Teddy KGB in Rounders is a prime example of this poker myth in action. In his final hand against Matt Damon’s character, Mike, Teddy KGB exhibits a host of bad poker behaviours. He drops his chips onto the table dramatically, making a mess of the pot. Upon losing, he slams his hands on the table, throws his cards at his opponent, and screams at spectators.

Again, great when you’re going for a big dramatic scene, but this attitude wouldn’t go unchecked at real-world poker tables.

What Hollywood Poker Gets Right

While on-screen poker isn’t always realistic, it does get a few things right. Here are some of the most accurate takeaways:

Psychological Warfare

If there’s one thing that’s realistic about poker in movies and TV, it’s the fact that every round is a battle of wits. Reading your opponents, masking your own emotions, asserting your dominance over competitors — these are just a few of the psychological tactics you need to master poker strategy and dominate the game.

In the show Billions — particularly the episode “Optimal Play” — poker strategy is cleverly paralleled to the high-stakes world of hedge fund management. On several occasions throughout the program, the main character, Bobby Axelrod (Axe), approaches finance and poker with the same mindset, using both arenas to test people’s mental strength, assess their loyalty, and expose their weaknesses.

The Dangers of Tilt

In the poker world, tilt refers to when a player gets so angry or frustrated that they end up making irrational gameplay decisions. This might include misreading opponents, betting beyond their means, or lashing out against fellow competitors.

In the movie Molly’s Game, audiences see one of the most extreme examples of how catastrophic tilt can be. In it, a measured, methodical poker player loses $70,000 to a far less experienced opponent. The defeat sends him spiralling. He goes on to play compulsively, making careless bets and ultimately losing over $1 million.

While tilt doesn’t cause most players to suffer million-dollar losses, this is nonetheless a realistic portrayal of its dangers. It’s also a powerful reminder of why simple strategies, such as setting a stop loss and taking regular breaks, are so important to combat it.

The Importance of Position

In games like Texas Hold’Em, your position (where you’re sitting relative to the dealer) can make or break you. In general, the later your position, the more of an advantage you have. This is because you get to see how your opponents bet before you place your own wager. However, even if you’re betting early, you can still leverage that position.

No movie displays the power of position (and teamwork) quite as effectively as Ocean’s Eleven. Rusty (played by Brad Pitt) teaches a group of novice celebrity players how to play Texas Hold’Em. In one round, Danny Ocean (George Clooney) joins the action in an early position. He bets first, raising the pot by $500 and applying pressure to his less experienced counterparts.

In contrast, Rusty is in a late position, giving him the time and freedom to watch how his opponents respond to the raise. He then has the power to use their plays to inform his own bet. In the end, Danny’s early-stage aggression works in his favour — which happens to be in Rusty’s favour, too.

As dramatic as movies and TV can be, though, they’re no substitute for the real-life thrill of playing poker yourself. Every hand is an opportunity for a new experience and a new story to tell.