In the past couple of years, you may have started to notice Daisy Edgar-Jones. When the actress co-starred as a mixed-up 20-something in Normal People, we happily welcomed her to our screens — when she then appeared as a young Mormon murder victim in Under the Banner of Heaven, we began to indulge in a slight obsession with this Golden Globe-nominated ingénue.

What do both of those projects have in common, besides the fact that they star Edgar-Jones? They were both adapted from books — clearly a genre the actress feels at home in. She’s starring as Kya in the film adaptation of New York Times bestseller Where the Crawdads Sing, a North Carolina love story turned murder mystery. In her interview with Katie for Next Question, Edgar-Jones gushes over the immersive filming process, calling it a “joy” and her castmates full of “flavor.”

Because the movie portrays a Southern girl abandoned to raise herself in a dense marsh, filming took place in Louisiana. London native Edgar-Jones was struck by the heat, the mosquitos, and the predators. At one point, Edgar-Jones even had to dive into gator-infested waters — “Although at the time, I didn’t know how alligator-infested they were, which I think was a good thing,” she tells Katie.

All the fun of performing wild stunts was overshadowed, though, by a visit from Reese Witherspoon, who produced the film. “I grew up watching Reese. I have been a fan of hers for a very long time,” says Edgar-Jones. “I think she’s incredibly inspiring.” Edgar-Jones also tells Katie about how Witherspoon is working to change the film industry: “Her company is all about putting women in leadership roles and placing complicated women at the forefront of stories.”

On Katie’s podcast Next Question, Edgar-Jones also elaborates on the rise of her career, her marvelous accent work, her thoughts on the rest of the Crawdads cast, and her plans for the future. If you’re a fan, be sure to listen — and catch the film, which premieres today.