Anya Taylor-Joy won't attempt to replicate Charlize Theron's Furiosa performance

Anya Taylor-Joy will be taking a different approach to her portrayal of Imperator Furiosa because she knows matching Charlize Theron's performance "just can't be done".

The Split actress was announced as the lead in George Miller's Mad Max: Fury Road prequel Furiosa, in which she will play the younger version of Theron's character, earlier this week.

Speaking about the role for the first time on MTV's Happy Sad Confused podcast, Anya admitted she feels "so humbled and grateful" to have landed the part and is excited to work hard to match "the level of commitment" the cast of Fury Road had shown. However, she acknowledged that Charlize set the bar very high and no one can truly fill her shoes.

"I fell in love with Furiosa because of the way Charlize presented her," she said. "She did such an incredible job. It was so beautiful. I can't even think about trying to step into her shoes. It has to be something different because it just can't be done.

"I've already started dreaming about (Furiosa) and she's coming in very strong. I'm so committed to working as hard as possible as I can. I always said that I wanted a role that I would have to give everything to, it wouldn't just be my mind but my body, what I'm doing with myself when I'm not on set. I'm so excited for that and to push myself past the limits of what my brain thought was possible."

The 24-year-old, who is currently filming Robert Eggers' The Northman in Belfast, Northern Ireland, revealed she had yet to meet Miller in person, as their meetings have all been virtual, and that Edgar Wright, who directed her upcoming movie, Last Night in Soho, was one of the first people to text her to celebrate the casting news.

Anya will be joined by Chris Hemsworth and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II for the prequel.