The long-awaited Furiosa prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road is finally on its way, but it’ll be without the original Furiosa, Charlize Theron. As it turns out, the premise of the movie means it makes some sense that Theron wouldn’t be returning, but that doesn’t mean she hasn’t expressed a little bit of disappointment at not getting to revisit the role now.
“It’s a tough one to swallow. Listen, I fully respect [writer/director] George [Miller], if not more so in the aftermath of making Fury Road with him. He’s a master, and I wish him nothing but the best,” Theron told The Hollywood Reporter back in July, when news of Furiosa first broke. “It’s a little heartbreaking, for sure. I really love that character, and I’m so grateful that I had a small part in creating her. She will forever be someone I think of and reflect on fondly. Obviously, I would love to see that story continue, and if he feels like he has to go about it this way, then I trust him in that manner. We get so hung up on the smaller details that we forget the thing that we emotionally tap into has nothing to do with that minute thing that we’re focusing on.”
The news that Furiosa was on its way – without Theron – first arrived in a May article in The New York Times, which revealed that Miller was planning a Furiosa-centric prequel but focused on a much younger version of the character in her 20s. As a result, he sought out an actress in that same age range, rather than having Theron revisit the role. She’s still been having a pretty great 2020, with another surprise smash hit action movie under her belt: Netflix’s sleeper hit The Old Guard features Theron as immortal mercenary Andy, and the movie’s success has led to plenty of support for a possible sequel.
The role of Furiosa, meanwhile, will be taken over by Anya Taylor-Joy, as reported by Deadline. Taylor-Joy has most recently been seen in the Jane Austen comedy Emma and will star on Netflix’s Cold War-era drama The Queen’s Gambit, out later this month. We can’t wait to see her take on a young version of Furiosa, but we’ll miss Theron too in the role she made iconic.
