Anya Taylor-Joy Says Women “Don’t Method Act” Because They Have “Things to Take Care Of”
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JULY 13: Anya Taylor-Joy attends the premiere of Apple TV's "Lucky" at the Directors Guild of America on July 13, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. Photo Credit: Monica Schipper
by Chris Tremblay Aug 6
3 MIN READ
Anya Taylor-Joy has offered a pointed explanation for why, in her view, women generally do not pursue the most extreme forms of Method acting.
“If you’ll notice, women don’t Method act because we have things to take care of, so we can’t completely lose our minds,” Taylor-Joy said during an interview with Complex News published July 29.
The comment circulated widely in early August, prompting renewed debate about the differences between professional immersion, conventional acting preparation and the behavior sometimes associated with high-profile Method performers.
Taylor-Joy did not say that women are incapable of Method acting, nor did she identify a specific group of women who do not use the approach. Her remarks focused instead on the demands of sustaining an intense psychological immersion while remaining accountable to the other people involved in a production.
Taylor-Joy described her approach to acting as “a controlled psychosis.”
She explained that an actor may spend as many as 16 hours a day imagining another person’s thoughts, moving like that person and inhabiting their home and clothes.
Taylor-Joy compared the experience to having “a sister or a roommate” temporarily present in her mind. She said people close to her understand that process and can help her return to herself if the identification with a character becomes excessive.
The actor also said she could not imagine maintaining that level of immersion continuously because film and television productions involve large teams.
“You’re going to work with hundreds of people and it is your responsibility to be good to them and to help them do their best job,” she said.
She added that being overly invested in behaving badly would undermine the collaborative nature of a production.
Coverage of the remarks has framed them as part of a longer-running debate about whether men and women face different professional consequences when they pursue extreme on-set behavior in the name of artistic commitment.
Some reports characterized Taylor-Joy’s point as an argument that women have less freedom to “lose themselves” in a role because they are expected to continue managing practical responsibilities and workplace relationships.
That interpretation goes beyond Taylor-Joy’s exact wording, however, because she did not explicitly say that women would be punished, blacklisted or otherwise penalized for using Method techniques. Her stated concern was that an actor cannot allow immersion to interfere with the work of the wider production.
Reporting on the clip has also emphasized that women do use Method-related techniques, while noting that public discussions often focus on highly visible examples of male performers who remain in character or adopt demanding behavior outside filmed scenes. The distinction matters because “Method acting” can refer both to formal exercises used in actor training and to a broader popular shorthand for remaining psychologically or physically immersed in a role.
The comments form part of a wider explanation Taylor-Joy gave about how she builds characters. She said she looks for a character’s “resting face,” or the person they are when they are not performing for others, and tries to think the thoughts that character would think.
Taylor-Joy connected that internal process to what audiences see on screen, saying that the character’s thoughts can be communicated through physical behavior and expression. She did not present herself as an actor who remains fully in character at all times, and reports of the interview noted that she said she had never gone “full Method.”
The interview was conducted as Taylor-Joy promoted Lucky, an Apple TV series in which she serves as both lead actor and executive producer. The conversation also covered her acting process, the series, fashion, astrology and her work on Dune: Part Three.
Taylor-Joy’s comments therefore addressed both performance and workplace conduct. Her formulation suggested that deep engagement with a character can coexist with a clear boundary between the actor’s internal work and the obligations owed to fellow cast and crew members.
The clip’s renewed circulation has made that boundary the central point of discussion: Taylor-Joy linked the practical responsibilities she associates with women to her rejection of losing control, while also describing acting as an immersive process that can temporarily reshape how a performer thinks and behaves.
The comment circulated widely in early August, prompting renewed debate about the differences between professional immersion, conventional acting preparation and the behavior sometimes associated with high-profile Method performers.
Taylor-Joy did not say that women are incapable of Method acting, nor did she identify a specific group of women who do not use the approach. Her remarks focused instead on the demands of sustaining an intense psychological immersion while remaining accountable to the other people involved in a production.
“Controlled Psychosis”
Taylor-Joy described her approach to acting as “a controlled psychosis.”
She explained that an actor may spend as many as 16 hours a day imagining another person’s thoughts, moving like that person and inhabiting their home and clothes.
Taylor-Joy compared the experience to having “a sister or a roommate” temporarily present in her mind. She said people close to her understand that process and can help her return to herself if the identification with a character becomes excessive.
The actor also said she could not imagine maintaining that level of immersion continuously because film and television productions involve large teams.
“You’re going to work with hundreds of people and it is your responsibility to be good to them and to help them do their best job,” she said.
She added that being overly invested in behaving badly would undermine the collaborative nature of a production.
A Debate About Gender and Professional Expectations
Coverage of the remarks has framed them as part of a longer-running debate about whether men and women face different professional consequences when they pursue extreme on-set behavior in the name of artistic commitment.
Some reports characterized Taylor-Joy’s point as an argument that women have less freedom to “lose themselves” in a role because they are expected to continue managing practical responsibilities and workplace relationships.
That interpretation goes beyond Taylor-Joy’s exact wording, however, because she did not explicitly say that women would be punished, blacklisted or otherwise penalized for using Method techniques. Her stated concern was that an actor cannot allow immersion to interfere with the work of the wider production.
Reporting on the clip has also emphasized that women do use Method-related techniques, while noting that public discussions often focus on highly visible examples of male performers who remain in character or adopt demanding behavior outside filmed scenes. The distinction matters because “Method acting” can refer both to formal exercises used in actor training and to a broader popular shorthand for remaining psychologically or physically immersed in a role.
Taylor-Joy’s Broader Acting Philosophy
The comments form part of a wider explanation Taylor-Joy gave about how she builds characters. She said she looks for a character’s “resting face,” or the person they are when they are not performing for others, and tries to think the thoughts that character would think.
Taylor-Joy connected that internal process to what audiences see on screen, saying that the character’s thoughts can be communicated through physical behavior and expression. She did not present herself as an actor who remains fully in character at all times, and reports of the interview noted that she said she had never gone “full Method.”
The interview was conducted as Taylor-Joy promoted Lucky, an Apple TV series in which she serves as both lead actor and executive producer. The conversation also covered her acting process, the series, fashion, astrology and her work on Dune: Part Three.
Taylor-Joy’s comments therefore addressed both performance and workplace conduct. Her formulation suggested that deep engagement with a character can coexist with a clear boundary between the actor’s internal work and the obligations owed to fellow cast and crew members.
The clip’s renewed circulation has made that boundary the central point of discussion: Taylor-Joy linked the practical responsibilities she associates with women to her rejection of losing control, while also describing acting as an immersive process that can temporarily reshape how a performer thinks and behaves.
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