Mad Max fans divided by first look at Fury Road prequel

The Mad Max fanbase is divided over the first publicity image of Anja Taylor-Joy as Furiosa’s titular character.

First announced in October 2020, Furiosa is the prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road. It is co-written and directed by Fury Road’s George Miller, who also co-created the Mad Max franchise itself.

Furiosa plot details remain largely under wraps for now, however, Warner Bros. Pictures’ official synopsis confirms that the young Furiosa (Taylor-Joy) will be abducted by villain Dementus (Chris Hemsworth) early on in proceedings.

Warner Bros. also continues to play it coy regarding the identities of many of the cast’s characters. That said, the studio confirmed that Taylor-Joy would sub in for Fury Road’s Charlize Theron up front.

Mad Max fans divided by first look at Furiosa in Fury Road prequel

The decision to recast the Furiosa character split the Mad Max faithful at the time – and not much has changed since. At least, not if reactions to the first official look at Taylor-Joy in costume are anything to go by.

Said promo image adorned the Warner Bros. booth at CCXP and quickly found its way online thanks to on-site snaps taken by Collider. And it wasn’t long before the pro-Charlize and pro-Anya camps were battling it out like Mad Max’s Wasteland warlords.

“As much as I am excited… honestly I feel Charlize Theron looks young enough to play even the young version,” posted one X user. “Meh. Bring Charlize back for a sequel. She made Furiosa an icon,” chimed in a second. “They should’ve just continued with a Charlize Theron Furiosa sequel instead of going for a prequel with a younger version,” lamented a third.

Mad Max fans on the other side of the Furiosa divide were just as vocal, though. “Brilliant.. looks like Anya Taylor-Joy is born to play this role” wrote one fan. “Anya Taylor Joy as Furiosa is great casting for this prequel film,” echoed another. “WHOA WHAT SHE ACTUALLY DOES KINDA LOOK THE PART,” a further commentator exclaimed.

Leading lady aside, George Miller has a big mountain to climb with Furiosa. Mad Max: Fury Road is one of the most acclaimed action films of the last decade, and continues to inspire filmmakers today.

That includes director Dan Trachtenberg, who previously noted Fury Road’s influence on his 2022 Predator prequel, Prey. According to Trachtenberg, he looked to the fourth Mad Max outing for cues on how to “tell a story mostly through action.”

For all the latest TV and movie news and updates, be sure to check out Dexerto’s full coverage here.