Anya Taylor-Joy, Drew Starkey, and Timothy Olyphant Talk ‘Lucky’
Moviefone speaks with Anya Taylor-Joy, Drew Starkey, and Timothy Olyphant about Apple TV’s ‘Lucky’. “Everyone was so game,” Taylor-Joy said of the cast.
(L to R) Anya Taylor-Joy and Drew Starkey star in ‘Lucky’.
Premiering on Apple TV July 15th is the new crime thriller miniseries ‘Lucky’, which is based on the book of the same name by Marissa Stapley and was created by Jonathan Tropper (‘The Wrecking Crew’).
Lucky
“Wish her luck.”
TV-MADramaCrime
Audience
Score
95
Air Date: July 14th, 2026
Starring:Anya Taylor-Joy, Annette Bening, Timothy Olyphant
The series stars Anya Taylor-Joy (‘Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’), Annette Bening (‘Captain Marvel’), Timothy Olyphant (‘Justified’), Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor (‘King Richard’), Drew Starkey (‘Outer Banks’), and William Fichtner (‘Heat’).
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Anya Taylor-Joy, Drew Starkey, and Timothy Olyphant about ‘Lucky’, Taylor-Joy’s contributions to the screenplays, Starkey’s approach to his role, what Lucky learned from her father, and why Olyphant loved working on the miniseries.
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Anya Taylor-Joy in ‘Lucky’, premiering July 15, 2026 on Apple TV.
Moviefone: To begin with, Anya, I understand that as a producer you were involved in the writing process and helped shape the direction of your character. As an actress, what was that process like for you?
Anya Taylor-Joy: Absolutely. As my first executive producer credit and as the first time that my production company, Lady Killer was going to be a part of something, I wanted to be in on everything and to learn from the people I was around. I felt so privileged to be with collaborators who trusted my voice but also had a bit more experience than I did so we could find that fusion together. It was fantastic because by the time you show up on your first day and when you’re the actor in something, you have the first day jitters and your kind of wondering how that’s going to go. But when you’re showing up to your first day with a group of people that you’ve been talking to for a year, there’s just a different sense of family that exists there and you get to see the effect of all your decisions. Anytime one of our wonderful cast members would walk into a room, I was like, “Yes, that’s so good. I’m so pleased that that worked out.” So, it was a different sense of fulfillment. Everyone was so game. Every one of our directors, every member of the crew, they were all just wanting to bring their A-game and wanting to dig until we found something that we all felt good about. I think that’s a pretty remarkable experience.
MF: Drew, how would you describe Carrie and Lucky’s relationship in your own words and what was it like creating that on screen with Anya?
Drew Starkey: I mean, first, she’s incredible to work with, an incredible friend, and incredible producer. I could not do what she did at all. It’s astounding. I was impressed every day by her. She makes it easy to collaborate with. Lucky and Carrie are two people who are finding each other. They both come from incredibly similar backgrounds, but different at the same time. I think Jonathan Tropper said this to me. He said, “Lucky lies out of necessity, Carrie lies out of convenience.” I thought that was perfect. So, they come from similar places, and I think there’s a sense that they’ll never find anyone who can understand what they’ve been through and feeling incredibly lonely through that. But they found each other and now suddenly there’s a different path laid out in front of them. But again, working with the team that we were working with and the collaboration, I mean, specifically with episode four, I remember coming in and really working on it with everyone and re-tweaking things and rewriting things if necessary. But it was constantly in flux and changing.
Drew Starkey in ‘Lucky’, premiering July 15, 2026 on Apple TV.
MF: Timothy, what was the original pitch you got for this series, and why did you want to be a part of this show?
Timothy Olyphant: I got a call from Lauren Neustadter, who I’d worked with prior on ‘Daisy Jones & the Six’, and I just adore her and have a tremendous amount of respect for her. So, I was already leaning forward because it was a Hello Sunshine thing and Tropper had created it and I’d worked with Tropper before. I knew his work. He’s a fantastic writer. I heard Anya and then I heard Annette Bening and then they said, “We’re shooting in Los Angeles.”
MF: Timothy, what was your first reaction to the finished screenplays and the way they adapted Marissa Stapley’s book?
TO: Well, once you get into the material, it just gets better and better as it goes. It was one of those, for me personally, I come in and have these little moments of when she’s reaching out for help. So, a lot of it was that the script, even with the script alone it was just great. It was thrilling and cool. It had muscle and action and was sexy. Then when Tropper and I started talking about where it was going in terms of as the action picks up and becomes even more and more thrilling, you also start to get a sense of who these people really are and how complicated they are and what a rich relationship to play. So, it just had a lot to like about it.
Timothy Olyphant stars in ‘Lucky’.
MF: Anya, Lucky’s father has taught her a special set of rules to live by that help her during her current situation. Can you talk about her relationship with her father and creating that with Timothy Olyphant?
ATJ: Again, much like Drew, Tim was the only guy that we wanted for John. We knew that we needed somebody that was so likable, like annoyingly likable and charismatic because you had to understand why Lucky just didn’t want to look there. She didn’t want to see it as the thing that hurts the wound. I think to his credit, and this is what I really appreciate about the incredible writing that Tropper and Cassie have done, is when you’re in these big scenes where technically you have a good guy and a bad guy, the way that each of them explains or gives the excuse of why they’ve done what they’ve done, you buy it and you get it. I think what’s very interesting about John is from his perspective, he is the hero of this story, and he has done great things for Lucky, like brilliant things. There’s no one as fabulous and intelligent as this girl and the reality is that she has had to go through the world alone and unstable, and I think that comes as a genuine surprise to him.
MF: Timothy, can you talk about the rules your character teaches Lucky and what did that tell you about the character?
TO: Well, he’s both a professional and a caring father and incapable of being very good at either, at times. I mean, it’s a rich character to play. He’s so full of confidence, but of course, that’s what he’s selling. But he’s just completely unaware of what a disaster he is and it’s fun to play those kinds of roles.
Timothy Olyphant in ‘Lucky’, premiering July 15, 2026 on Apple TV.
MF: Finally, Timothy, what was it like working with Anya to create that father/daughter relationship on screen?
TO: Well, working with Anya was a joy. Anya Taylor-Joy is a joy! She’s so good. Her work speaks for itself. She’s just such a talent and just a lovely person and such a pro. She shows up early and works her tail off and you never hear about it. She just creates a really great set. I feel lucky to have been a part of it. When the writing’s good and the actors are good, those relationships just take off in such a cool and meaningful way.
‘Lucky’ premieres on Apple TV July 15, 2026.
What is the plot of ‘Lucky’?
When a multi-million-dollar heist goes sideways, con artist Lucky (Anya Taylor-Joy) is forced to go on the run. Pursued by both an FBI agent (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor) and a ruthless crime boss (Annette Bening), Lucky must fight for her life, and a way out.
Who is in the cast of ‘Lucky’?
- Anya Taylor-Joy as Lucky Armstrong
- Annette Bening as Priscilla Matheson
- Timothy Olyphant as John Armstrong
- Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor as Agent Billie Rand
- Drew Starkey as Cary Armstrong
- Clifton Collins Jr. as Dutch
- Mo McRae as Agent Eli Gates
- William Fichtner as Whittaker
- Eric Lange as Kershaw
Anya Taylor-Joy stars in ‘Lucky’.
List of Anya Taylor-Joy Movies and TV Shows:
william fichtnerdrew starkeyluckyclifton collins jrapple tvanya taylor joyannette beningtimothy olyphantjonathan tropperaunjanue ellis taylor
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