After Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, the Mad Max franchise can progress in several different directions, depending on George Miller’s creative vision. Serving as the fourth installment in the Mad Max franchise, Mad Max: Fury Road premiered three decades after Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome and kickstarted a new era for the George Miller series by garnering almost unanimously positive reviews from viewers and critics. The film even went on to land ten nominations at the 88th Academy Awards, further cementing its legacy as one of the best action movies ever made.

A decade after Mad Max: Fury Road‘s release, the action franchise returned to the big screens with a prequel/spin-off, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. Like its predecessor, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga also impressed most viewers and critics, paving the way for more installments in the franchise. Although no official confirmations surrounding the Mad Max movie series’ future have been made yet, George Miller has hinted at how he wishes to put the pedal to the metal and throttle the franchise’s post-apocalyptic drama in a new direction.

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Furiosa’s Mad Max Cameo Explained

Mad Max has an interesting cameo in Furiosa, raising questions not only about who plays him but also about his future in the George Miller franchise.

Mad Max: The Wasteland

Mad Max: The Wasteland Would Be A Sequel To Mad Max: Fury Road

Soon after Mad Max: Fury Road‘s premiere, George Miller confirmed he had prepared the screenplay for a sequel titled Mad Max: The Wasteland. The movie was supposed to be a direct continuation of Mad Max: Fury Road, marking Tom Hardy’s return as Max Rockatansky. However, the director later shifted his focus towards Three Thousand Years of Longing and only returned to the Mad Max franchise to create a Fury Road prequel, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. Although Mad Max: Fury Road sequel is still seemingly on the cards, it is uncertain when Miller will move its gears.

When asked about Mad Max: The Wasteland in 2022 (via Variety), George Miller revealed that “it’s still not fully evolved.” His statement surrounding the movie’s development suggests that even though he has a rough idea about what he wants to portray in it, there are aspects of its story that need more refinement before being wholly materialized into film. While Mad Max: The Wasteland might still be on the horizon, the lack of updates surrounding its potential development suggest that, after Furiosa, the franchise could continue in other possible ways.

Mad Max Prequel

The Prequel Would Be Set One Year Before Mad Max: Fury Road

While penning the fourth film in the series, George Miller and his co-writer, Nico Lathouris, wrote a novella covering Max Rochatansky’s time in the desert one year before the events of Mad Max: Fury Road. Since the novella pans out everything that happened to the character before he turned into the calloused, stoic Max audiences saw in Mad Max: Fury Road, George Miller hopes to explore it with another prequel movie, which could serve as the next installment in the Mad Max franchise. Given how Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is also a prequel to Fury Road, it would be strange if Miller followed it up with another prequel.

However, given how George Miller effectively added multiple new layers to the franchise’s overarching storyline by walking through Furiosa’s backstory, it is hard not to have faith in his vision. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga also has a post-credits scene featuring the bird bobblehead that rests in Nux’s (Nicholas Hoult’s character) car before he wrecks it in the storm. Since Nux dies in Mad Max: Fury Road, this post-credits scene could be a hint that a prequel show or movie could walk through his backstory. Given how George Miller even has the backstory for the Doof Warrior in mind, it would not be surprising if he has a similarly detailed narrative for War Boy Nux.

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The World Of Furiosa & Mad Max Fury Road Explained

Filmmaker George Miller is perhaps best known for being the visionary behind the Mad Max universe and lore, which includes both Fury Road and Furiosa.

What George Miller Has Said About Future Mad Max Movies

George Miller Seems Cautiously Optimistic About Mad Max’s Future

In an interview (via Digital Spy), George Miller revealed he has already thought about what happens after “Furiosa ascends to the top of the Citadel.” However, he still has not mapped these narratives and believes the franchise has many more stories to tell. Opening up about his future plans, he said that if Furiosa does well, he would move forward with his ideas for the franchise. In another interview (via TIME), Miller confirmed that another Mad Max: Fury Road prequel, titled The Wasteland, could see the light of day if Furiosa “gets traction.“

He also added that Tom Hardy could be a part of the film “if the planets align.” Given how Mad Max: The Wasteland was previously touted as a Fury Road sequel, it seems like its title has now been assigned to the potential prequel that follows Max’s journey a year prior to Fury Road. As George Miller’s ideas and plans suggest, there are many directions in which the Mad Max franchise can progress. Hopefully, Furiosa will perform well at the box office and give Miller the opportunity to execute everything he envisions.

Mad Max

Mad Max is an Australian post-apocalyptic franchise created by George Miller and Byron Kennedy. The first three films star Mel Gibson as Max Rockatansky, a former police officer who seeks revenge after his family is murdered. Tom Hardy took over the role for 2015’s Mad Max: Fury Road, which was followed by Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga starring Anya Taylor-Joy as Furiosa.

Cast

Mel Gibson , Joanne Samuel , Hugh Keays-Byrne , Steve Bisley , Tim Burns , Roger Ward , Tom Hardy , Charlize Theron , Nicholas Hoult , Rosie Huntington-Whiteley , Riley Keough , Zoe Kravitz , Abbey Lee , Courtney Eaton , Anya Taylor-Joy , Chris Hemsworth , Tom Burke , Alyla Browne

Character(s)

Max Rockatansky , Immortan Joe , Imperator Furiosa , Rictus Erectus , Angharad , The People Eater , Corpus Colossus , Toecutter , Nux , Dr. Dementus

Video Game(s)

Mad Max (1990) , Mad Max (2015)

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