Yahoo Movies ‘Mad Max’ Spin-Off ‘Furiosa’ Prepping For New South Wales Shoot; Film Set To Be Australia’s Biggest Ever
The wheels have been greased on the hotly-anticipated Mad Max spin-off Furiosa, which is set to star Anya Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth.
A press conference with director George Miller and Hemsworth in attendance took place in Australian state New South Wales today to confirm that the spin-off is preparing to film in the territory next year.
More from Deadline
Miller is now in post-production on his romance pic Three Thousand Years of Longing and will go from that into Furiosa, which will star The Queen’s Gambit actress Taylor-Joy in the origin story of the titular Furiosa, played by Charlize Theron in Mad Max: Fury Road.
According to AP, the film is expected to become the biggest ever made in Australia. New South Wales state Premier Gladys Berejiklian said today that the project will inject at least $350M AUD into the local economy and create 850 jobs.
Great news the Mad Max prequel – Furiosa starring Chris Hemsworth – is being filmed right here in NSW. The biggest ever film to be made in Australia, supporting more than 850 local jobs and bringing in $350 million to the economy. pic.twitter.com/HzZXcqeAUt
— Gladys Berejiklian (@GladysB) April 19, 2021
As reported by The Sydney Morning Herald from the event, Miller said that the team had been looking to film a key action sequence from the movie this year due to a proposed decrease in the Aussie state’s tax incentive, and had already built cars and prepared stunts. However, the tax rebate decision has now been reversed, with government reps today confirming news from earlier this month that it will remain at 40% going forward, which has given the producers more time.
Miller commented during the presser that the long-gestating project was finally hitting floors because of stability at studio Warner Bros. “Since we started Fury Road I think there’s been six different regimes at Warner Bros,” he said. “Now it’s stabilized very much and they’re able to basically pay attention coherently to the films they want to make and this is one of them.”
He added that Furiosa will be a “unique” installment in the franchise but will be familiar to fans of the series. The director also emphasized that he is looking forward to watching the film in a cinema; Warner has employed a day-and-date policy for its entire theatrical slate in 2021, meaning all of its releases go directly online, but it has since confirmed this will change from 2022.
Furiosa is slated for release on June 23, 2023.
Miller was joined by Chris Hemsworth at the press event. The actor is currently in his native Aus shooting Thor: Love and Thunder. He described working on Furiosa as the “biggest pinch-myself moment, because I’ve grown up watching it [Mad Max] and it’s so iconic… It is a huge honor. A lot of pressure, but exciting pressure that is certainly motivating.”
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is also starring in Furiosa in an undisclosed role.
Fury Road notably had a rocky production, with the entire crew being forced to relocate to Namibia to complete the film after harsh Australian weather disrupted the original shoot. The movie debuted at Cannes in 2015 and grossed $376M globally. In 2017, a lawsuit was filed by Miller’s production company Kennedy Miller Mitchell over an unpaid bonus from Warner, which had put the sequels in jeopardy.
Australia has been dubbed “Aussiewood” this year after several high-profile productions located there due to the country’s success with dealing with Covid. You can read more about that in Deadline‘s recent feature.
Best of Deadline
Coronavirus: Movies That Have Halted Or Delayed Production Amid Outbreak
Hong Kong Filmart Postponed Due To Coronavirus Fears; Event Moves Two Weeks Before Toronto
Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
