Anya Taylor-Joy returns to television as the star and a producer of "Lucky", a new crime thriller now streaming on Apple TV+, in which she plays a con artist running from her past and for her life.
The series, reviewed by Variety, casts Taylor-Joy as Lucky Armstrong, a woman who has spent a lifetime slipping between identities and now finds herself pursued on several fronts. It is adapted from the 2021 novel of the same name by Marissa Stapley.
The cast and creators
Alongside Taylor-Joy, the show features Timothy Olyphant and Annette Bening in prominent roles, part of an ensemble built around Lucky's tangled world of family, crime and pursuit. The series was created by the novelist and screenwriter Jonathan Tropper, and counts Reese Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine among its producers, a company known for shepherding book adaptations led by women to the screen.
A chase built for a star
At its core, "Lucky" is a propulsive chase story, one that leans heavily on its lead. Reviewers have generally responded well, with much of the praise directed at Taylor-Joy, whose screen presence has anchored projects from "The Queen's Gambit" to a run of feature films. Variety's notice was broadly positive, framing the show as a slick, fast-moving thriller carried by her performance, even as some critics have suggested the series is stronger as a star vehicle than as a fresh take on the genre.
Apple's crowded slate
The arrival of "Lucky" adds to a busy period for Apple TV+, which has invested heavily in prestige drama and star-driven thrillers as it competes for attention against larger streaming rivals. For Taylor-Joy, the role continues a move between big-screen work and the kind of high-profile television that first brought her to wide notice, betting that audiences will follow a compelling anti-heroine through seven episodes of double-crosses and near escapes.
