There’s a Mad Max: Furiosa Script Ready to Go and Such a Movie Isn’t Necessary
Jonathan Barkan
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In an interview with Variety, Charlize Theron revealed that George Miller had three scripts written with Fury Road, one for the film we saw, one that acted as a backstory for Max himself, and one that works as a prequel for Furiosa, Theron’s character from Fury Road. Her character, in my opinion, was one of the highlights of the 2015 post-apocalyptic action film. That’s why I’m going to take the stance that a prequel film that gives us more backstory on Furiosa is a bad idea. Allow me to explain…
What worked so well about Fury Road was how much it didn’t hold the viewers’ hand and yet conveyed so much of the story and world without spelling it out for anyone. Much like how in John Wick no one batted an eye at the Continental Hotel and how it worked, the same could be said for Fury Road and much of the story within. By having the characters speak naturally and without any forced exposition, not only are we were able to pick up enough pieces of the story for ourselves but we viewers are trusted to figure it out on our own.
It’s because of this approach that I don’t think we need a Furiosa movie. In Fury Road, enough about Theron’s character is explained for us to know that she was kidnapped at a young age, rose through the ranks of Immortan Joe’s warriors to become one of his most esteemed imperators, and commanded the respect of his legion of warriors. However, we also find out through her actions that she is still a person with mortals and ethics. She learns of his sex slaves that are only meant to be breeding stock and she refuses to partake. She orchestrates a bold and dangerous plan to break them free and is willing to die for this cause. When she meets the Vuvalini, we learn via their conversation and actions enough about the ways of these people to get an idea of who they are, of what Furiosa came from.
Why, then, do we need to go back and see that story put to screen? We’ve been given all the pieces to create a full, rich story for Furiosa, so there’s no need to create it for us as though we’re idiots who are unable to figure things out for ourselves. The majesty of Fury Road, on top of being one of the greatest actions films in recent history, is that it trusted its viewers to be smart and intuitive. Crafting a prequel film for her story is a spit in the face of that very approach.
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