“Sorry we’re just playing,” smiles actor Anna Sawai mid Zoom call from her house in Tokyo, her black tresses dancing across her khaki t-shirt. She’s making a love heart gesture with her fingers, and glittering red hearts are fluttering across the screen like wayward butterflies.“ What is this feature and why don’t I have it?” screams Game of Thrones alumni, Nathalie Emmanuel, her previous Fast and Furious 9: The Fast Saga co-star – and even faster friend – who is interviewing her today. “Okay, I’m gonna need a point-by-point instruction booklet on how to do that on my Zoom.”

A manual to Anna Sawai’s meteoric rise is something you’ll find less readily available. Partly, because the New Zealand born Japanese star’s risky jump from stage to screen – girlband FAKY to Pachinko and most recently the powerful and determined Mariko in Shõgun (seeing 9 million views in the first six days of release) would be pretty extraordinary to emulate. And partly, because taking on two projects based on two already treasured books is daunting enough – even with a play by play in hand. But if you’ve seen her fight scenes from Fast and Furious 9 and beyond, you’ll know Anna isn’t going to back down in the face of fear – she’s here to flip the script with projects that change people’s lives. “If I’m able to affect someone in that way, that’s amazing,” the 31-year-old tells us. Nathalie’s thoughts? “Just know that’s probably already happened.”

Some quick facts about Anna. She loves Saltburn and one of her dream co-stars would be Barry Keoghan. She’s only just watched Triangle of Sadness, which she found thought-provoking. Her favourite TV show growing up was Friends. She wakes up to birds chirping as her alarm preset (how wholesome). Her song of the summer? “Chasing Summer” by SiR. Enough of that, we’ll let them do the talking. In conversation, the pair chat risks, rewards, and how she’s representing Japanese women in spaces that historically portrayed them inaccurately.

To read the full interview, pre-order the Summer 2024 issue here.