Anya Taylor-Joy to Star in Crime Thriller for Apple TV+

Latina representation in television is always few and far between, especially when Latinx-led shows keep getting cancelled. That’s why we’re so excited to see powerhouse Latinas breaking new ground like Anya Taylor-Joy. The 28-year-old of Argentinean descent rose to prominence after starring in Netflix’s The Queen’s Gambit, for which she won a Golden Globe, as well as the critically-acclaimed Emma. Next up, she is slated to star in and executive produce a new limited series from Apple TV+, Lucky. Based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Marissa Stapley, Taylor-Joy will star as “a young woman who left behind the life of crime she was raised in years ago, but must now embrace her darker, criminal side one final time in a desperate attempt to escape her past,” according to Variety. It is also being executive produced by Reese Witherspoon under her company Hello Sunshine, which seeks to spotlight female-led stories in entertainment.

“Hello Sunshine continues to do a fantastic job of championing women’s voices and I’m thrilled to be joining the team alongside Jonathan, Cassie and Apple TV+ to bring ‘Lucky’ to life,” Taylor-Joy told Variety.

Originally published in 2021, Lucky tells the story of the titular Lucky Armstrong, who just pulled off a heist with her boyfriend Cary worth a million dollars. But just as she’s ready to start a new life with a new name and identity, she finds herself alone without her father or Cary, who taught her every skill she’s ever need to con, scam, cheat, and lie. When she buys a lottery ticket worth millions, she realizes that cashing it in will lead to her inevitable arrest and imprisonment. As she struggles to carve out a new life for herself, she must also confront her past, reconcile with her father, find her mother who abandoned her years prior, and reconsider what her love for Cary really meant.

The actress, who identifies as Latina, is known for speaking Spanish and voicing her love for Argentina, where she lived after she was born until the age of six. She’s also aware of the privileges she has a white Latina in Hollywood. “I am aware that I don’t look like a typical Latin person, and that’s not fair. I don’t want to be someone you can just sub in for that role, when I’m really white and blonde,” she previously told Vulture.

This marks one of the few projects produced by Hello Sunshine that stars a Latina lead including From Scratch with Zoe Saldaña.