MOVIE PREVIEW – The George Miller-directed film will likely serve as an origin story for the character previously portrayed by Charlize Theron.
It’s been seven years since Mad Max: Fury Road revived the iconic franchise starring Mel Gibson and Tom Hardy. The film’s enormous critical and commercial success, as well as its first place at the Oscars that year, led to speculation that Hardy’s films would spawn their franchise. Eventually, this post-apocalyptic cinematic universe will be expanded with a prequel film, Furiosa, based on the character of Emperor Furiosa, played by Charlize Theron in the 2015 film.
The film is still at a very early stage. While the earlier films always starred the eponymous Max Rockatansky, Furiosa will be the first film in the franchise to feature a different protagonist, with a story told from another character’s perspective and point of view. Nevertheless, George Miller is actively recruiting actors and shaping the script to support the character’s origin story first introduced in Fury Road.
Here’s everything you need to know about the upcoming Mad Max: Fury Road prequel, Furiosa.
Who is Imperator Furiosa?
Imperator Furiosa is a recent character introduced by George Miller in Fury Road, who did not appear in the Mel Gibson films of the 1980s. Furiosa, played by Charlize Theron, handles logistics for Immortan Joe and seems to be a trustworthy confidant. She’s entrusted with a substantial armoured fighting vehicle and is in charge of Joe’s small team of war boys. However, later in the film, he betrays Joe by being sent to deliver oil from Gas City to rescue Joe’s concubines and search for and find the Green Place he remembers from his childhood. His struggle to save Joe’s concubines, and his and Max’s alliance against Joe’s forces as they try to reach Green Place, sets the tone for the entire story of Fury Road.
Furiosa’s character portrayed the underlying themes of feminism, along with slavery, oppression, social stratification and even climate degradation. Despite Fury Road’s focus on Tom Hardy’s Max Rockatansky, Theron’s Furiosa becomes one of the most essential characters in the film and the one who builds the subtext of Miller’s story.
Who is the new face of Imperator Furiosa?
Miller had previously considered using anti-ageing technology, and Theron would take on the role of a 20-year-old Furiosa. The film, being a prequel, would tell the story of a young Furiosa, explaining her origins, and probably also how Immortan came to be in Joe’s army of slaves and oppressors. The idea was to have Theron digitally rejuvenated to reprise her role, in the same way, that Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci did in Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman. However, Miller eventually scrapped the idea and decided to reprise the role with a younger actress, as Theron was too old for the part.
In October 2020, it was confirmed that Anya Taylor-Joy would play a role in the prequel. Taylor-Joy has recently enjoyed continued success with her acclaimed roles in Autumn de Wilde’s Emma and the Netflix hit series Queen Gambit. Taylor-Joy has received the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Miniseries or TV Movie and the Screen Actors Guild Award – Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Miniseries or TV Movie.
What is Mad Max: Furiosa about?
The story and plot details are still under wraps, and Miller has not revealed the primary synopsis for Furiosa. However, the film will undoubtedly tell a story that will probably refer to Furiosa’s rise to Emperor. The process of her separation from her family and her subsequent ordeal (in which she loses an arm, only to be replaced by a mechanical one) will most likely feature in the story. Her legacy as a prominent member of the Vuvalini clan of warrior women may also be part of the film’s central plot.
Who is directing the film?
The film is written by George Miller, who will also direct the movie. Miller previously wrote the screenplay for Furiosa during and immediately after the filming of Fury Road. During the writing of Fury Road, Miller said that he had created an extensive backstory for the other characters in the film and that from the beginning, a complete story built around Furiosa was always the plan. Before Fury Road started shooting, Miller had already completed the script for the prequel, which actress Rosie Huntington-Whiteley read. The actress, who played Angharad in Fury Road, said,
I read [the script] when I got the role. It’s brilliant. I always wondered if this film would get made.
Nick Lathouris is co-writing the film with Miller. In addition, the entire award-winning Fury Road team will return for Furiosa. Visual designer Colin Gibson, sound mixer Ben Osmo, make-up artist Lesley Vanderwalt and editor Margaret Sixel will all return to reprise their creative roles in making the film. Each of these team members won Academy Awards in their respective categories for their work on Fury Road. Cinematographer John Seale will also return to fulfil his promise to come out of retirement for the sole benefit of George Miller.
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Who else is playing in Furiosa?
Although no specific character roles have been revealed who would be part of the story, Miller has already started to assemble a talented cast of actors to fit into the cast. The most notable addition is Chris Hemsworth, known for his portrayal of Thor in the Marvel Universe. Hemsworth confirmed the casting via social media handle Instagram, sharing his joy and excitement and pledging to pay tribute to the legacy of the Mad Max films. Speculation is that Hemsworth could play the film’s arch-enemy.
In the same post, it was also confirmed that Yahya Abdul-Mateen II was also cast in the film. The actor is known for his acclaimed performances in Aquaman and Chicago’s 7th Trial. He was recently seen in the highly anticipated The Matrix Resurrection. However, Mateen later dropped out of the film, leaving another actor with the opportunity to star. Tom Burke, best known for his role as Orson Welles in David Fincher’s Mank and famous for his role in The Bodyguards, has been cast in the unnamed role.
Where is Furiosa set in the timeline?
The timeline of the Mad Max films is a subject of constant debate. As there was a significant gap between Fury Road and Mad Max 3, it is not known how these films are related. Fury Road is seen chiefly as a reimagining of the franchise. Still, given that Fury Road depicts Max as somewhat tired compared to his predecessor, it could be argued that the film could be set in the later years of Max’s life, but this cannot be definitively confirmed.
Furiosa would take place in the same timeline as Fury Road. The direct prequel to that film and the character of Imperator Furiosa was not part of Mel Gibson’s Mad Max trilogy. So any connection he makes would directly reference the events seen in Fury Road. However, given that these films are all part of the same continuity and Miller’s extensive backstory for Furiosa’s character, we can hope for some character and plot references to the original films in the franchise. It will reportedly span several years in the timeline, clarifying the state of events in that post-apocalyptic world.
Furiosa is most certainly about the same character Theron played in Fury Road, so we can hope that there will be references to Max in the film, as well as Immortan Joe. Whether Miller will connect the dots deeply between the movie, or leave it up to the audience’s interpretation, will be revealed when the film arrives in cinemas.
Furiosa: release date
Furiosa has no release date yet. George Miller is currently finishing the Idris Elba film, Three Thousand Years of Desire and will only start work on the Mad Max prequel. Nevertheless, the shooting could begin in March 2022. Given the tentative timing, Miller had previously set June 2023 as the release date for the film. However, it has now been pushed back to 24 May 2024.
The future of Furiosa?
Miller also wrote the outlines for two sequels to Fury Road, but the projects never got off the ground due to payment problems between Miller and Warner Bros. A tentative title for the sequel was announced at the time – Mad Max: The Wasteland. It remains to be seen what the future of the Mad Max franchise will hold after Furiosa. However, this particular film series has never failed to dazzle audiences, even if they have been waiting for a sequel for years. Perhaps Charlize Theron will be seen in the role again if there is ever a sequel to the ongoing franchise.
-theGeek-
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