George Miller has been kicking around the idea of a prequel to his beloved 2015 sequel Mad Max: Fury Road. As the film celebrates its five year anniversary, the director confirmed that there will be a cast change in his next project.
One of the most popular characters to come out of Mad Max: Fury Road was Furiosa, portrayed by Charlize Theron. Miller has confirmed to The New York Times that his planned Furiosa prequel will be dealing with a much younger version of the character. Thus, Theron won’t be reprising the role.
Early reports indicate that Miller is eyeing Anya Taylor-Joy for the role of young Furiosa. Taylor-Joy is best known for her work in 2015’s The Witch and 2020’s Emma.
In the same article, Miller notes that the option of using de-aging CGI was explored but ultimately dropped. He specifically referenced the “uncanny valley” effect with regards to Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman which famously de-aged its actors. He did say that Japanese video game developers were making strides in the field. Although in some cases the aging models can be a form of celebration like in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 remaster using older skaters.
This film is still a separate project from the planned Mad Max: Fury Road sequel that Miller is working on. This project will focus on a new adventure for the titular character coming in as the fifth entry of the franchise. For many fans, the anticipation is high as Mad Mad: Fury Road is still considered one of the best action films of the last decade. Hopefully a new Mad Max game can follow closer to the spirit of the new film than the 2015 game did. Although, for some fans a game on Furiosa might be the better choice.
Mad Max: Fury Road is available now.
Source: New York Times
