For those excited to see Yahya Abdul-Mateen II in a George Miller film, this news is sure to disappoint many. Tom Burke (Mank) is replacing Yahya Abdul Matten II on the Mad Max: Fury Road spinoff, which stars Anya Taylor-Joy in the titular role. Abdul-Mateen says that he’s exiting the Furiosa spinoff due to scheduling conflicts, though he did not identify which project is conflicting with the film.
George Miller will direct, co-write, and produce the Furiosa spinoff with his longtime producing partner Doug Mitchell. Plot details are scarce, though we do know that the story will delve into Furiosa’s origins. In regards to the casting of Anya Taylor Joy, in Empire‘s Celebration of Edgar Wright issue, Miller brought up the moment Wright convinced him to cast Anya Taylor-Joy in the film. Miller had seen an early cut of Wright’s Last Night in Soho, which served as his first introduction to the actress.
“I’d known about Anya but I’d never seen her in a film until I saw her in Soho. And I remember thinking, ‘Gee, she’s interesting.’ I started to say to you, ‘I’m looking for someone to cast as Furiosa,’ and I barely got the sentence out before you said, ‘Don’t go any further, she’s great, she’s gonna be huge. She’s fantastic to work with.’ You were so emphatic about it.”
“I said to her, ‘I’d like you to do a very simple test, which is read something to camera.’ And it was the speech from Network. The ‘I’m mad as hell’ speech,” Miller explained. “Apart from the brilliance of the writing, it’s a piece that can be done to camera. It doesn’t need an acting partner. Anya did one version, which was really good. Then I gave her just a couple of simple notes about intention and she just absolutely nailed [it]“
