Daisy Edgar-Jones has had a busy couple of years. After her breakout performance in the BBC’s television adaptation of Normal People, the actor has gone on to star in a number of impressive projects, including Hulu’s Fresh and Disney+’s Under The Banner Of Heaven. 

But no role she’s taken on since Normal People has received quite so much hype as one of her most recent – the starring role of Kya in the Hello Sunshine adaptation of Where The Crawdads Sing.

The film has, of course, been at the centre of some fierce controversy since its release, in a follow-on from the controversy which has surrounded Delia Owens’ book since its publication in 2018. But despite this, it’s still proven popular; in the US, it opened to an impressive $17 million dollar debut.  

So, what is it about Where The Crawdads Sing which has made it such an enduring hit? According to Edgar-Jones, it could have something to do with the story’s main character, Kya.

Speaking in a new interview with Variety, the actor revealed what she finds most relatable about her character – and explained why she thinks this plays into the story’s popularity.  

“That resilience and continuing on, despite many hardships, is one of the aspects of Kya that I found very relatable. It’s a very human quality: To continue,” she said. 

“I was reading that story during the pandemic and many people resonated with it during that time. It was a time of collective hardship, of life-changing in ways that we haven’t expected. 

“But she is able to bounce back and survive in that hostile environment. And thrive.”

On top of this, Edgar-Jones explained more about the kind of message the cast and crew wanted to send to audiences watching the film, in light of Kya’s isolated life away from any real community.

“This idea of her as this ‘Marsh Girl’ is one that’s completely fabricated by the people in town,” she said. “We wanted to highlight how you can misunderstand somebody, paint a picture of them [in your mind] and find it hard to differentiate between that version and the actual person.”  

If one thing’s for sure, Edgar-Jones knows her character inside and out – and if you’re a fan of the Where The Crawdads Sing book, you can rest easy knowing Kya is in safe hands.

Daisy Edgar-Jones is Stylist’s July cover star. To check out her interview, where she talks about everything from fame and loneliness to London’s summers, you can subscribe to Stylist Extra.

Images: Getty/Sony Pictures