Although her career feels like it’s just getting started, Anya Taylor-Joy has quickly built an impressive and varied filmography that tells the story of a performer continually seeking new challenges. From her breakout performance as Thomasin in the historical horror film The Witch, Taylor-Joy has starred in everything from romantic period pieces to superhero horror hybrids. In each performance, she’s brought an intelligence and enigmatic allure to her characters that speaks to her talent as an actor.
Although Taylor-Joy has been attached to successful films like Split and the miniseries The Queen’s Gambit, there are projects in her filmography that deserve more recognition than they received. From big-budget action movies that failed to land with audiences in the theater to a pitch-black comedy about privilege and getting away with murder, the following four movies are overlooked masterpieces starring Anya Taylor-Joy. These movies show her range as a performer and why she is one of the most important and fascinating actors currently working in film.
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‘The Northman’ (2022)
Taylor-Joy reunited with The Witch director Robert Eggers for the brutal Viking revenge story The Northman. Alexander Skarsgård plays Amleth, a prince who watches his father, King Aurvandill (Ethan Hawke), be murdered by his uncle Fjolnir (Claes Bang) as a boy. Escaping death by Fjölnir’s assassins, Amleth returns to his Uncle’s land as an adult to plot retribution. While disguised as a slave to study his Uncle, Amleth falls in love with Olga (Taylor-Joy), a fellow slave with medicinal skills that aid him in his quest. When Amleth is faced with revelations that make him question his lifelong desire for revenge, he must choose between pursuing vengeance and letting go of his anger to make a family of his own.
Skarsgård gives the performance of his career as Amleth, a warrior who seems to gain strength in the heat of battle from his unbridled rage. Despite his physical prowess, a raw vulnerability of sadness and loneliness shrouds him, more clearly seen in moments with his mother Queen Gudrun (Nicole Kidman) and Olga. Taylor-Joy stands out as the calm in an emotional storm for Amleth, providing companionship and reassurance for the prince, allowing him a glimpse of a life he hadn’t considered for himself. The complex characters and their relationships to one another elevate The Northman beyond a standard Viking story. If the plot of the movie sounds familiar, it’s because it uses the story of Vita Amlethi as source material, the same story the play Hamlet was based on.
The Northman was unable to turn a profit in theaters, but the film found an audience when it became available through Video on Demand. On the rental platform, the movie was able to experience a surge of viewers thanks to critical praise and strong word of mouth. One part fantasy epic and one part historical drama, The Northman delivers a revenge story that brilliantly uses Nordic mythology to examine the line between seeking justice and fixation on revenge. Most impressively, The Northman might be the movie that accomplishes the impossible: uniting arthouse crowds and action movie fans into enjoying the same film.
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‘Last Night in Soho’ (2021)
An introverted young woman is transported to an intoxicating but treacherous past in the Edgar Wright-directed thriller Last Night in Soho. Ellie (Thomasin McKenzie) is a woman with dreams of making a career in fashion, but a new life in London studying at the London College of Fashion is an overwhelming change. After renting a room close to the school, Ellie begins experiencing detailed dreams of ’60s-era London that center around a beautiful blonde woman named Sandi (Taylor-Joy) who hopes to become a singer. As her waking life becomes distorted by the shadows of dark visions, Ellie finds that the dreams each night slowly tell a darker story about Sandi and the horrors she endured.
If awards were handed out for screen presence, Taylor-Joy would have taken them all as Sandie in Last Night in Soho. Although she had limited lines, Taylor-Joy commands every scene she’s in as a vision of ’60s glamour. Through Ellie’s visions, we see the entire tragic story of Sandie unfold, and the favored view of a past softened by nostalgia gives way to the harsh realities of the truth. As breathtaking as the flashbacks begin, they become equally claustrophobic when Sandie becomes trapped in a life with seemingly no peaceful exit.
Last Night in Soho benefited from early buzz, and the film was critically well-received, but that didn’t translate to overwhelming commercial success. Fans of Wright were there on day one to watch his newest effort, but a combination of factors, such as the pandemic and a storyline that was challenging to effectively market, contributed to the film underperforming. Like many of Wright’s movies, Last Night in Soho blends multiple genres for a wholly original narrative inspired in part by the horror movies of the ’60s. Last Night in Soho remains a stylish, underrated neo noir mystery that recreates a bygone era in stunning and haunting detail.
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‘Thoroughbreds’ (2017)
An underrated gem of Taylor-Joy’s that deserves more attention is the darkly comedic thriller Thoroughbreds. The film follows two teens, Amanda (Olivia Cooke) and Lily (Taylor-Joy), who were once friends but have since grown apart. After Amanda’s mother arranges for the two to spend time together, Lily learns that Amanda feels she is unable to experience emotions. When Lily’s wealthy stepfather (Paul Sparks) sets in motion a plan to send her to a strict boarding school, Lily and Amanda begin to discuss the possibilities of killing him.
Taylor-Joy plays Lily like a wolf in designer sheep’s clothing, surprised but intrigued when Amanda can see through the smokescreen she has grown accustomed to operating behind. Thoroughbreds is a movie that plays on perception and first impressions to deceive the audience, extending beyond Amanda and Lily to the caustic stepfather and Anton Yelchin as a drug dealer with dreams bigger than his capability or willingness. Which is not to say Thoroughbreds portrays its anti-hero leads as criminal geniuses, but rather intelligent enough to manipulate people by capitalizing on their sympathies or insecurities.
What ties Thoroughbreds together, and what will likely turn it into a movie due for a cult following, is the pitch-black humor that makes it stand out from the other teen-behaving-badly thrillers. Taylor-Joy and a fantastic Cooke are electric on screen, whether they’re verbally sparring with one another or joining forces to obliterate an overwhelmed target. Taylor-Joy is chilling in the role of Lily, demonstrating her ability to convey intelligence and malice through subtle mannerisms. Fans who have not caught this masterfully plotted film should make it a priority to watch Thoroughbreds as soon as possible. Judging by the fact that Thoroughbreds failed to make back its estimated $5 million budget at the box office, the odds are high that many have missed it.
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‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’ (2024)
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is a worthy prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road, shifting the focus away from the road warrior to tell Furiosa’s origin story. Once a girl safe from the apocalypse in a hidden paradise, Furiosa is stolen by a wild gang led by the charismatic but insane Dementus (Chris Hemsworth). Traded as a bargaining tool into the Citadel, an adult Furiosa (Taylor-Joy) hides her true identity under the guise of one of the many War Boys. When she sees an opportunity to escape the Citadel and return home, Furiosa takes control of her fate and puts herself on a path to kill the man who ruined her life and killed her mother.
It’s criminal that Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga wasn’t embraced by audiences, because it boasts the same level of thrills as Mad Max: Fury Road, but with added emotional stakes for a well-rounded viewing experience. A revenge story is a reliable plot device for an audience to get behind, and in framing Furiosa’s story as such, the prequel is spiritually closer to the original Mad Max, starring Mel Gibson. Taylor-Joy is vengeance personified in her performance of the character Charlize Theron originated in Mad Max: Fury Road. Actions speak louder than words in the world of Mad Max, and Taylor-Joy excels at infusing her violence with seething rage and pain, elevating action scenes that were already masterfully constructed.
Unfortunately, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga was a high-profile bomb, guaranteeing there won’t be return trips to the apocalyptic wasteland anytime soon. If this is to be the last movie in the franchise, and never say never, at least the series went out on a high note. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is one of the rare sequels that expands the source material in a way that a rewatch of Mad Max: Fury Road will hit the viewer differently now that they have added context. As more people watch Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga on streaming, word of mouth will undoubtedly be kind to this emotionally driven action masterpiece.
