‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ Sequels Held Up By George Miller-Warner Bros. Lawsuit
George Miller’s movies have historically taken a long time to germinate, and 2015’s Mad Max: Fury Road was years in the making. After a nightmare of a production period that involved numerous delays, bad weather, and two stars who couldn’t stand each other, Fury Road finally opened to widespread acclaim, won six Oscars, and was even nominated for Best Picture (rare for a genre movie). That kind of buzz usually means sequels, but word on a lawsuit between Miller and Warner Bros. casts some doubt on the possibility of that ever happening.
The court battle has been ongoing since last November, when Miller’s production company filed a suit against Warner Bros. alleging that the studio refused to pay Miller a $7 million bonus for bringing in his movie under the $157 million budget. Warner Bros. insists that Fury Road cost $185.1 million, according to some new information from the Sydney Morning Herald. Warners apparently convinced Miller to shoot a few scenes differently and add some new ones, after which Miller convinced WB to let him shoot his scenes the way he wanted them to. Miller insists they agreed that the money those additional clean-up scenes cost would not be included in the film’s final budget (since it was Warner Bros.’ fault they had to be shot in the first place). WB claims they merely suggested the additional scenes rather than insisted on them, and claims that Miller agreed to find some of the additional filming himself.
In the meantime, Miller has written two more scripts set in the world of Fury Road, and both Charlize Theron and Tom Hardy have expressed interest in reprising their roles. But if this suit doesn’t turn out for Miller, it’s unlikely he’ll feel an urge to work for the studio again. Finger crossed that Miller can ride shiny and chrome straight out of court and make those new movies happen.