Anya Taylor-Joy's role in 'X-Men: The New Mutants' was a ''privilege''.

The 23-year-old actress portrays Illyana Rasputin aka sorceress Magik and she relished taking on a character that was so different to anyone else she's ever played.

She said: ''I feel very privileged to pay a character I haven't played before.

''She's very big and angsty and she's struggling a lot with her internal world but in a very external way, whilst a lot of the characters I've played before are very internal.''

And Anya - whose character can teleport - has also enjoyed getting to grips with the action scenes.

She told SciFiNow: ''I'm having the best time with the sword because it's so much fun and who doesn't want a badass sword to swing around? So that's cool. I love her.''

The actress has promised fans of the comic books they won't be disappointed with the way her character is depicted in the film.

She said: ''I think that obviously it's a comic book and we're bringing this into the real world so certain things have to be grounded in reality.

''But she's definitely got all the same quirks and I think the fans will be happy with how we've kept to the original depiction of the character.''

Her co-star Maisie Williams - who plays Rahne Sinclair, aka Wolfsbane - was also pleased to take on a very different character to her previous work.

The former 'Game of Thrones' star said: ''My character is far more introverted than any character I've ever played.

''She has powers but she doesn't really know how to use them.

''In fact, I think she's quite terrified of them and what they do to her.

''She's a character who likes to be in control, almost so much that it limits her from letting go.''