The average 22-year-old takes great pleasure in anticipating days off. An inclement weather advisory that cancels classes or closes the office? Score. A three-day weekend due to a national holiday that you totally forgot about? Winning. But Anya Taylor-Joy, who you might recognize from thriller films like Split and the upcoming Marvel project The New Mutants, is looking to fill her calendar as much as possible. The actress has racked up nearly 26 movie credits in the last four years. Yeah, you read that right — that’s about six movies per year. And while you might assume she’s looking to take a break soon, she plans to keep her foot on the pedal as she makes a name for herself in Hollywood.
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And that hustle is clearly working in her favour, because for Taylor-Joy's 27th role, she'll be playing the face of Viktor&Rolf's latest launch: Flowerbomb Midnight. The perfume, a remix on the best-selling Flowerbomb, features a dark, floral scent of night-blooming jasmine, patchouli, and musk with a touch of fruitiness. In celebration of this new release, Refinery29 caught up with the British-Argentinian actress to talk all things fragrance, career, and beauty.
This perfume launch in a way correlates to your career: It’s a mysterious, darker version of a perfume, and you’ve made a name for yourself in the thriller genre — was this what interested you in being the face of the campaign?
"I'm a big believer in nobody being black and white, or in this case, black and pink. I've always felt like someone who's into Disney and really happy and bubbly, and then also just incredibly interested in the dark belly of things. So, the idea of being the face of Flowerbomb Midnight and Flowerbomb really appealed to me, because it felt like Viktor&Rolf understood the two different sides of my personality without having to make me choose."
At the start of your career, did you ever fear getting boxed into one genre?
"I believe in myself as a chameleon, so I have played all of these different people, and although they might've lived in similar dark worlds, if you look at them, they're actually quite different and have unique struggles."
With these characters in “dark worlds,” how do you unwind after months of filming such intense scenes?
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"I do another movie [laughs]. I'm really excited because my career has gone in a way that I didn't expect it to, and I've just been rolling with the punches. I'm about to start work on my next three movies, and when that finishes, I will have made 26 films in four years. I just don't stop, but I love that. I'm sure that at some moment I'll be like, 'Whoa, I need to take a break from being other people,' but I just find that I'm growing up so much with these characters."
Twenty-six movies in four years? Wow!
"It's like a compulsion. I feel like this is what I'm put on Earth to do. It makes me the happiest in the entire world — I don't just mean acting, but being an artist. And if I wasn't creating all the time, I think I'd feel empty."
Let's talk beauty. We read that you cut off your hair and dyed it pink at the age of 14, please tell us more.
"When I was 14, I had really, really long black hair. I said, 'new me, it's time.' So, I went to Ricky's and bought Manic Panic hair dye in the shade Pretty Flamingo. And I dyed it in a Chipotle bathroom in New York City. My hands were looking gnarly for a while."
Ha. But why at Chipotle?
"I was 14, and it felt more dramatic. I didn't want to spend a second more in New York City without looking the new version of me."
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What are three beauty products you can’t live without?
"A good cleanser. I love Chanel's Sublimage, because it's extremely delicate and I have incredibly sensitive skin. Toner is my favourite product of all time, because it feels like you're really treating yourself when you apply it. I’m loving this new mist by True Botanicals. And lastly, the Bond Girl lipstick shade by Charlotte Tilbury. It's the only lipstick that goes with absolutely every hair colour I've ever had — and there have been multiple."
Are there any beauty tips that you've learned from growing up in Argentina or going back to visit?
"I tend to go very natural while I'm there, because I'm always in and out of the pool or just with the horses. I like to mix olive oil with sugar. You rub it all over your face and your skin, leaving it so moisturized. Olive oil for everything is what my mom taught me."
You once said that you love when you're not wearing makeup, but then you have such creative looks that you wear, like blue eyeliner or the bold looks that we see on Instagram. So, when do you feel most like yourself?
"I am terrible at makeup, I cannot put it on, but when you're working with such talented hair and makeup people, and you have an outfit that's not yours, I'm just the most extra person ever. It’s like you're co-creating with all these talented people and artists, too. I think I feel most like myself when I'm creating, whether that's creating in my own life by hanging out with my friends and being a co-conspirator with the universe or just putting a look together."
Viktor&Rolf Flowerbomb Midnight, $115 (1.7 OZ), is available now at sephora.com.
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