Charlize Theron On Playing Furiosa In A Mad Max Sequel: ‘I Would Love To Bring Her Back To Life.’
One thing is guaranteed in Hollywood; every few years, an action movie will come along and totally redefine the genre itself. The Terminator began the trend way back in 1984, and its 1991 sequel, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, did much of the same, bringing state of the art special effects to the forefront of the viewers mind. In 1994 it was Speed, a film that primarily takes place on a commuter bus, where the vehicle is rigged to explode should it drop below 50 mph. Simple, thrilling, effective; Keanu Reeves has rarely been better. Six years later, and Keanu was at it again, this time in The Matrix. The movie wowed audiences worldwide and changed the face of modern cinematography as we know it. It’s a familiar trend in Hollywood, one that film fans anticipate with every eager release.
For the modern generation, though, you only have to look at Mad Max: Fury Road. Not only did it reinvent the action genre, much like the films listed above, but it proved that action films can finally be taken seriously; Fury Road was nominated for several Oscars, was a dominant force during the awards season, and has won a slew of various accolades. The film also introduced us to one of modern cinema’s best female heroes — Furiosa, played by Charlize Theron. The film’s worldwide success immediately generated rumours of a sequel, and the fans are eager to see it, but most of the buzz for a potential follow-up has centered around the female warrior. The question is simple: will Furiosa return to the big screen?
“I would love to bring her back to life, are you kidding? To have people react to something like that where you went and worked your balls off (laughs), it’s really, really nice, it kind of just puts everything into perspective. I can see how people are responding to her and I look at my little girl and I’m like, ‘Yeah I’d love to play this woman again, definitely.'”
Theron may be eager to reprise the role, but it all boils down to George Miller. The director is adamant that a sequel is in the works, but he has flipped back and forth on whether Furiosa will be involved. Initially, Cinema Blend confirmed that Miller had no intention of casting her in a sequel at all, but he later changed his mind, hinting that she could actually star in her own movie, as revealed by IGN. Whereas nothing has been confirmed yet, and whereas Tom Hardy is still contracted for Mad Max future sequels, the director certainly has some interesting options available to him.
Miller also claimed that Furiosa’s backstory is compelling and interesting, a topic I covered for The Inquisitr back in January, so with the director willing to revisit the character, it’s likely she will feature in the Mad Max franchise at some point in the future. How and when this will come about is up for debate, but with Theron’s willingness to be involved now abundantly clear, and with Miller’s hard-boiled dedication to the franchise itself, this could be a step in right direction for one of the two mooted Mad Max sequels.
“I haven’t seen George since the Oscars. I think all of this has been really overwhelming for him, and he likes to take his time and he’s very concise. I think if he’s ready, he’ll be ready, and hopefully he’ll call.”
I don’t think Charlize Theron is alone in that thought. The fans will be eager to see this “phone call” happen and a sequel green-lit sooner rather than later; after all, they don’t want to wait another thirty years for the next Mad Max movie.
Mad Max: Fury Road is available on Blu-ray and DVD now.
[Image via Warner Bros. Pictures]
