Charlize Theron's 'Mad Max' Prep Secret: Rolling in the Dirt

The dystopia writer-director George Miller created for the Mad Max series, which returns with next week’s fast and furious Mad Max: Fury Road, is one without law, without vegetation… and without much hygiene. Filmed in the dry and desolate Namib Desert in southern Africa, the environment was just as dirty and dusty for its actors as you’d imagine.

Faced with the prospect of receiving dirtification in the makeup chair every morning, Charlize Theron (who plays the rebellious Furiosa) chose another route: She rolled around on the ground.

“When we started the movie, there were all these fancy machines being designed to get the dust on us,” she tells Yahoo Movies, which you can watch in the video above. “Finally, I was just like, 'Are you guys kidding? I’m going to be here five minutes before we shoot, and I will be rolling in the dirt, and then we will go. They’re like, 'Really, you’re OK with that?’ It’s like, what’s the difference? Getting the dust from the fancy box or just rolling in the dirt. There’s no difference.”

Related: The 5 Craziest Moments from the New 'Mad Max’ Trailer

Some of her castmates followed her DIY example: “You just became one with the sand,” admits Zoe Kravitz, who plays Toast.

And even if they didn’t take the proactive dirt-rolling approach, the filth followed them home each night: “The shower water each night was orange, washing off the dirt, says Rosie Huntington-Whiteley (Splendid). "You’d go home, turn your boot upside down, and it’d just be sand pouring out,” notes Nicholas Hoult (Nux).

“It takes a long time to get all that desert sand out of every orifice,” explains the TMI Tom Hardy (The Dark Knight Rises), who takes over the Max Rockatansky mantle from original star Mel Gibson. “It’s at least a couple months after you’ve come back form the desert.”

The very dirty Mad Max: Fury Road opens everywhere May 15. Watch the trailer: