Kalshi may take legal action against Netflix, alleging defamation over a trailer for its documentary, which depicts traders making bets in a state where Kalshi isn’t permitted to operate.

In a cease-and-desist letter, Kalshi has urged Netflix to promptly remove the trailer for “Instadocs: The Prediction Market Games” and to issue a public retraction.

The company claims the video inaccurately implies that users traded sports event contracts on Kalshi in Nevada, breaching a court order. The trailer features a scene where individuals gather in a Nevada home to discuss prediction markets during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

One participant is seen holding what looks like a Kalshi transaction receipt and states, “I like betting on Kalshi,” followed by a claim of placing a $5,000 bet on Spain winning the tournament. Kalshi is currently prohibited from offering event-based contracts that would allow Nevada residents to place wagers on sports, as mandated by a court order related to ongoing litigation with state regulators.

The company argues that Netflix’s portrayal suggests they violated this injunction by implying the trade shown in the trailer occurred in July 2026. The letter expresses concern that “these false statements jeopardize Kalshi’s legal standing in litigation that is crucial to its business,” pointing out that the trailer could lead to court sanctions or other penalties.

Kalshi highlighted several discrepancies that suggest the receipt featured in the trailer is not genuine. For instance, the receipt on the phone is dated May 16, 2025—over a year before the trailer events.

Additionally, the phone screen displays the word “crop,” which indicates the user was viewing a saved image instead of engaging with the live Kalshi application. Before escalating to legal threats, Kalshi notified a Netflix employee responsible for the trailer about these inaccuracies.

According to the letter, the employee acknowledged not realizing the receipt was from the prior year or that it seemed to be a cropped screenshot rather than a live transaction. Although the employee agreed that the receipt shouldn’t be included in the final documentary, they declined to remove it from the trailer, despite warnings about potential legal repercussions in the Nevada litigation. In response, Netflix maintains that all footage in the documentary is authentic.

“The footage was filmed at the Winible World Cup Watch Weekend in Las Vegas on July 17, 2026,” said a spokesperson. “The trader featured with the bet on Spain provided us with a screenshot of his bet, which was made in May 2025 before any Nevada court order. Any specific trades or bets mentioned during that weekend are transactions between the individual and the app where they placed their bets.”