Forget Dune, This Anya Taylor-Joy Sci-Fi Epic Is a Start-to-Finish Masterpiece

Image via Warner Bros. Published Nov 10, 2026, 12:22 AM EST Rotten Tomatoes | Letterboxd | Metacritic Carolyn Jenkins is a voracious consumer of film and television. She graduated from Long Island University with an MFA in Screenwriting and Producing where she learned the art of character, plot, and structure. The best teacher is absorbing media and she spends her time reading about different worlds from teen angst to the universe of Stephen King. Sign in to your Collider account It was an act of cruelty that Denis Villeneuve gatekept St. Alia of the Knife in Dune: Part Two, but the female death-spirit who walks without feet will finally be revealed in earnest in Dune: Part Three. Anya Taylor-Joy was seemingly born to play Paul Atreides’ Abomination sister, Alia, and even still, the actor’s best sci-fi role was years earlier. Taylor-Joy’s most impressive character to date was in the Mad Max: Fury Road prequel, Furiosa, as the formidable, titular character. Furiosa did not impress at the box office, but that is in no way representative of the masterful sci-fi movie. Many raised issues with the pacing of the film, remaining nostalgic for the high-octane thrill ride that Fury Road was. Furiosa was instead a more thoughtful and slow-burn story, which, in many ways, eclipsed the must-watch Tom Hardy venture. The prequel shows the future Imperator’s origins in the Green Place before she is taken and struggles to find safety in the wasteland of the outback. A far more ambitious tale than Fury Road, Furiosa was the first to put Taylor-Joy in the desolate wasteland of the desert. ‘Furiosa’ Is a Sand-Covered Masterpiece Dune is perhaps the prototypical story full of sand, but the world of Mad Max was the first for Anya Taylor-Joy. George Miller created an iconic dystopian world with his franchise, which foresaw world powers collapsing and the only true commerce being the importance of guzzoline. Max makes his way through the wasteland in his Interceptor, drifting from area to area, but Furiosa’s story is one full of humanity and striving against the patriarchy. COLLIDERInteractive Long-range scan active Movies/Science Fiction/Survival Assessment Collider Survival Assessment Which Sci-Fi WorldWould You Survive? 8 questions · 5 worlds · one honest verdict Five of the great screen futures, and not one of them is built for comfort. Answer eight questions about instinct, loyalty and the line you would cross, and the scan will tell you which one you would still be standing in. Worlds in range ▦︎The Matrix ◈︎Mad Max ◑︎Blade Runner ▲︎Dune ✦︎Star Wars Begin the scan Question 01 of 08INSTINCT The world as you know it ends overnight. What is your first move? No wrong answer. There is a wrong hesitation.AFind out what is really going on behind all of it BGrab a vehicle and as much fuel as you can carry CKeep your head down and show up to work anyway DLearn the rules of whoever is in charge now EFind other people and start organizing ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next Question 02 of 08RESOURCE You can stockpile exactly one thing. What is it? Choose carefully. You are not getting a second run.AInformation nobody else has BFuel CClean money and cleaner documents DWater EA ship that can get you off-world ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next Question 03 of 08THREAT Which kind of enemy scares you the most? Be honest about what keeps you up.AOne that can be anywhere, wearing anyone's face BA convoy of people who want what you are carrying CSomeone who looks exactly like you DA rival family that has been planning your downfall for generations EAn empire with unlimited resources and no patience ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next Question 04 of 08AUTHORITY How do you handle the people in charge? Every world has them. Even the ones that pretend otherwise.AAssume they are lying and work around them BNobody is in charge where I am CFollow the orders, file the report, stay invisible DStudy them, get close to them, outlast them EJoin whoever is fighting them ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next Question 05 of 08ENVIRONMENT Pick the place you would rather wake up in: You will be there a while.AA grey city that feels slightly too perfect BAn endless desert highway CA rainy neon street at three in the morning DA dune sea with a fortress on the horizon EA crowded spaceport full of strangers ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next Question 06 of 08ALLIANCE Who do you want standing next to you? Pick one. You only get one.AA guide who knows far more than they are telling you BOne person you trust and nobody else CNobody. You work alone DA loyal circle you grew up with EA crew of misfits who argue the whole way ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next Question 07 of 08MORALITY Which line would you cross to survive? Everybody crosses one.ALying to the people closest to you BTaking what you need by force CLooking the other way DPlaying a long game that costs other people dearly EBlowing something very expensive up ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Next Question 08 of 08PURPOSE What are you really fighting for? Last question. Make it count.AThe truth, whatever it turns out to be BTomorrow. Just tomorrow CSomething that finally feels like a real life DYour family's name EEveryone who cannot fight for themselves ← Back Keys 1 to 5 or A to E · Enter to advance Run the scan Scan completeYou would survive ▦︎ The Matrix The Resistance, Zion You take the red pill, you stay in Wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes. You would survive The Matrix because you were never fully sold on the version of reality you were handed. You notice the seams. You ask the second question. In a world built to keep people comfortable and incurious, that instinct is the whole fight, and it is why Morpheus would have found you long before you found him. From the Collider file The Wachowskis' 1999 film won four Academy Awards, including Visual Effects and Film Editing. Bullet time was shot with a rig of roughly 120 still cameras firing in sequence around the actors. Keanu Reeves trained in martial arts for about four months before a frame was shot, recovering from neck surgery the whole time. It opened the same year as Fight Club and eXistenZ, in a run of films about not trusting the world in front of you. Red pill energy Pattern spotter Built to question ◈︎ Mad Max The Wasteland Oh, what a day. What a lovely day. You would survive the Wasteland because you do not waste energy mourning the world that ended. You move, you improvise, and you are very good with whatever is bolted to the thing in front of you. Furiosa would let you drive. That is not a compliment anybody earns easily. From the Collider file Mad Max: Fury Road won six Academy Awards in 2016, more than any other film that year. George Miller storyboarded the entire film as roughly 3,500 panels before there was a script. The chase was shot almost entirely practical in the Namib Desert, with real vehicles and real stunt performers. Anya Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth carried the prequel, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, in 2024. Keeps moving Improviser Good with engines ◑︎ Blade Runner Los Angeles, 2049 All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. You would survive 2049 because you know how to be small in a very loud city. You keep your head down, you do the job, and you hold onto one private thing that belongs only to you. That quiet stubbornness is exactly what both Deckard and K run on, and it is what keeps either of them going when the case stops making sense. From the Collider file Blade Runner 2049 won Roger Deakins his first Oscar for cinematography, on his fourteenth nomination. The film also took Best Visual Effects, 35 years after Ridley Scott's 1982 original. Villeneuve shot it on large-format film and kept the fog and rain practical on set wherever he could. Three short films by Luke Scott and Shinichiro Watanabe bridge the 30-year gap between the two movies. Keeps her head down Private Noir soul ▲︎ Dune Arrakis Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. You would survive Arrakis because you think in decades while everyone around you thinks in weeks. You read the room, you learn the customs, you wait. The desert does not reward speed. It rewards people who understand that patience is a weapon, which is the one lesson the Fremen never had to be taught. From the Collider file Denis Villeneuve's Dune won six Academy Awards in 2022, including Cinematography and Original Score. Hans Zimmer turned down Christopher Nolan's Tenet so he could score Dune instead. Dune: Part Two arrived in 2024 and brought in Austin Butler, Florence Pugh and Christopher Walken. David Lynch's 1984 version and Alejandro Jodorowsky's unmade one are both their own legends by now. Plays the long game Reads the room Patient ✦︎ Star Wars A Galaxy Far, Far Away Rebellions are built on hope. You would survive the galaxy because you never try to survive it alone. You collect people. You end up in the middle of other folks' problems and you stay anyway. Every version of this story, from the Falcon's crew to the Ghost's, runs on somebody exactly like that holding the group together. From the Collider file The 1977 original won six Academy Awards plus a special achievement award for sound effects. John Williams' score was recorded by the London Symphony Orchestra and became the best-selling symphonic film soundtrack ever. Andor took the galaxy somewhere colder and earned Emmy nominations for drama series in both seasons. The saga now runs across eleven feature films and a growing shelf of series on Disney+. Collects people Shows up Hope merchant Compatibility readout · top three 1 2 3 ↻ Retake the quiz Copied to your clipboard Scan filed byCOLLIDERCollider.com · The Sci-Fi Desk Her narrative starts when she is snatched from her matriarchal life in the Green Place and given to the insane – and aptly named – Dementus (Chris Hemsworth). Dementus uses Furiosa for his own purposes as he tries to gain more territory in a mad grab for power. The pre-adolescent uses her intelligence to escape into Immortan Joe’s service until she can cleverly blend into the surroundings of his Citadel. Furiosa is a character dependent on survival by her own wits, a stark contrast to Fury Road. The prequel opts for character building instead of a straight action movie, and it works in its favor. Taylor-Joy carries the movie handily, even if it wasn’t beloved at the box office. She has the inner strength to carry Furiosa’s story, which is far from easy. Fans can see how this character melts seamlessly into Charlize Theron’s portrayal -- which is night and day with the actor’s foray into Dune territory. Furiosa Is Far More Heroic Than Alia Atreides Furiosa charts the creation of a true hero. Though at first, she becomes a Praetorian as a way of survival, she finds the strength to fight for others. When she gains enough status and power, she becomes a beacon for Immortan Joe’s wives, eventually liberating them from sexual slavery. This is a far cry from Paul Atreides’ sister, Alia, who is slated to be just as dangerous as her genocidal brother in Dune: Part Three. The second movie in the Dune franchise establishes that Alia loves Paul above all else in a simple scene. This is projected to be the case in the follow-up film, which will show the ramifications of this dynamic. Alia will be Paul’s other half, the religious arm of his reign as Emperor of the Known Universe. The younger Atreides is far from a hero. Quite the opposite, in fact. Alia supports Paul in destroying billions of lives in his holy war that stretches across the galaxy. Her belief in her brother puts her closer to villain territory, which is the exact opposite of Anya Taylor-Joy's role in Furiosa. The rise of Furiosa as an Imperator is a hero origin story if there ever was one. Furiosa understands what it means to be breeding stock and that Immortan Joe’s reign is vile in his attempts to birth healthy male heirs. She cannot suffer his enslavement of these women and puts her life on the line to save them, no matter the cost. Dune is a tragic cautionary tale, whereas Furiosa is the beginning of a feminist utopia. Taylor-Joy has no problem playing both these characters with ease, but when it comes to integrity and making the world a better place, Furiosa is the clear winner and a masterpiece from start to finish. Release Date May 24, 2024 Runtime 149 minutes Director George Miller