PokerStars Releasing Documentary on Daniel Negreanu

May 12th, 2015 | by Greg Shaun

Daniel Negreanu PokerStars documentary KidPoker

Daniel Negreanu will be the subject of a new documentary created by PokerStars. (Image: PokerStars)

Daniel Negreanu is arguably the most successful poker player of all time. He has won more money in tournament play than anyone else in history, and he was inducted into the Poker Hall of Fame last year.

What better subject for a poker documentary?

During the live stream of the European Poker Tour Grand Final Main Event in Monte Carlo, PokerStars aired a trailer for KidPoker, an upcoming movie from PokerStars Original Films that will highlight the career of one of poker’s living legends.

“Daniel Negreanu, the man, the legend, and the subject of a soon to be released documentary that promises to take you into the mind and soul of one of the greatest poker players to have ever graced the felt,” reads the description of the trailer that can be found on its YouTube page.

Trailer Features Many Poker Players Talking About Negreanu

The trailer appears to show a film that will discuss both the ups and downs in Negreanu’s career, starting from his time as a child to his legendary status today. There’s discussion of his start in Toronto, his early struggles in Vegas, and times when his ego may have gotten the best of him.

There is also plenty of commentary from other elite players who know Negreanu well, including Phil Ivey and Jason Mercier.

“I think Daniel Negreanu is the most notable, most recognized, more famous poker player in the world,” Antonio Esfandiari can be heard saying early in the trailer.

“He ended up going broke,” Jennifer Harman says about some of Daniel’s struggles. “He learned a lot of lessons, having to start over again.”

Tournament Success Has Fueled Negreanu’s Stardom

Negreanu’s career accomplishments span both cash games and tournaments, but it is his tournament prowess that truly turned him into one of the few poker players whose name is recognized even outside of the poker community.

The Canadian star has won over $29.9 million in lifetime earnings; that’s enough to give him a $3.5 million lead over Esfandiari, who is currently in second place.

Negreanu scored his first major tournament title in 1998, when he won a $2,000 Pot Limit Hold’em event at the World Series of Poker. He has gone on to win six bracelets in total at the WSOP, and has finished as high as 11^th in the Main Event.

The Canadian has also scored two wins on the World Poker Tour. Both of those wins came in 2004, when he won the Borgata Poker Open and the Five Diamond World Poker Classic, each of which earned him over $1 million in prize money.

But Negreanu’s biggest cash ever didn’t come in a win. Last year, he came up just short in the $1 million buy-in Big One for One Drop, but still collected a prize of $8,288,001.

His consistent success has made Negreanu the winner of several Player of the Year awards, including being named WSOP Player of the Year in both 2004 and 2013, while winning the WPT Player of the Year award the 2004-2005 season. The Global Poker Index also named Negreanu the “Poker Player of the Decade,” based on his results covering the period between 2004 and 2013.

While no firm release date has been established for the release of KidPoker, the trailer says that it is “coming soon,” and a comment from PokerStars on the trailer’s YouTube page said that it will be released “this summer.”