The Mad Max family is currently mourning the loss of Hugh Keays-Byrne, who was a key part of the franchise for over 35 years after playing Toecutter in the classic 1979 original before donning the armor of Immortan Joe in Fury Road. Tributes have been pouring in following the 73 year-old’s passing, and George Miller has now revealed that he’ll look to honor his legacy in the upcoming prequel Furiosa.
The latest installment in the post-apocalyptic saga will follow the early days of Charlize Theron’s future Imperator, with rising star Anya Taylor-Joy set for the role and support coming from Chris Hemsworth and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. Theron might not be too happy with the story continuing on without her involvement, but the new recruits are all phenomenal talents in their own right that make solid additions to the universe.
Shooting on Mad Max: Furiosa is set to commence next year, but based on how long it took Fury Road to come together, there’s every chance that we may not see it for a long while. After all, Miller is currently busy putting the finishing touches to his fantasy romance Three Thousand Years of Longing with Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba, but after that, he’s heading back to the Wasteland.
In a recent interview, the 75 year-old paid tribute to Keays-Byrne and the impact he had on both the Mad Max series and Miller himself, saying:
“At first I found him formidable to the point of being scary because he was so into the role. The truth is he is a warm and sweet person and so embracing of everybody. I learned acting from him, probably more than anybody else that I worked with.”
Mad Max: Furiosa comes burdened with high expectations as the follow-up to one of the greatest action movies of the modern era, one that racked up ten Academy Award nominations including Best Picture and Best Director, and if it even comes close to matching the spectacular pyrotechnics of its predecessor, then audiences around the world are in for something special whenever it arrives.
