Furiosa, the post-apocalyptic action film, stars Anya-Taylor Joy as the titular character, a hardened war general with impressive driving feats under her belt. But Taylor-Joy recently set the record straight and explained how different she is from her character.
Mad Max is set in a post-apocalyptic world where gasoline is a valuable commodity. It powers vehicles, and dozens of gangs patrol the waste. Cars in the Mad Max world are modified to be war machines as they fight for water. Furiosa herself is an excellent driver (anyone would need to be to survive and thrive there), but Taylor-Joy does not appear to share the same quality.
In an interview with IndieWire, Taylor-Joy revealed that she has no license and thus cannot legally drive, though she did brag about her stunt driving abilities. “I don’t actually have a license, so I can’t drive. I can’t on a highway, I can’t parallel park, but if you need me to do a juicy 180 in a truck, I can do that and not hit the camera people, which is great," she said. "Eventually, I will be in a place long enough to get a driver’s license and then I’ll be really happy, because then I can play. But in terms of first cars, I think I’m quite spoiled in the fact that they were built by the ‘Mad Max’ art department.”
Taylor-Joy further joked that she hoped for the best for whoever her driving instructor turned out to be. “That’s the other thing, if a driving instructor gets in a car with me, all I know how to do is crazy stunt driving. I’m planning on getting my stunt driver’s certificate…so then I’ll be able to do all of my driving in all films, which would be great," she said. "But I fear for the poor man or woman that is taking the test with me, because gentle, I am not.”
There’s no word if Taylor-Joy is as dangerous and ferocious as Furiosa, but it’s safe to assume the lack of a license isn’t the only thing that separates the actress from the character. She's set to star against the similarly-affable Chris Hemsworth, who plays the villain in Furiosa, and she'll almost certainly have to use her driving skills to take him down.
Though Furiosa was originally played by Charlize Theron, who’s an amazing actress in her own right, Taylor-Joy's take on the character will be interesting to watch. Taylor-Joy plays a younger Furiosa over several years, meaning audiences will see her turn into who she is in Max Max: Fury Road, so her portrayal will probably not be exactly like Theron's version. How she makes the role her own is a question that will have to wait for the Furiosa release date.
Furiosa hits theaters on May 24, 2024.
Source: IndieWire