A new chapter in the Mad Max franchise may be on the way sooner than we realized. The Herald Sun in Australia reports that a prequel is currently in pre-production in Australia with filming possibly starting before the year’s end — and with Miller back at the helm. According to the report, this would be the Mad Max: The Wasteland project previously talked about. From the newspaper:
The prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road starring Tom Hardy will be filmed in and around Broken Hill… Pre-production is gearing up on the multi-million-dollar action-packed Warner Bros franchise, with NSW’s Broken Hill Studios Miller’s first choice for shooting, which could start as soon as later this year. Mad Max 4 was plagued by delays when extended rain turned the desert green and the uber director had to move location to Namibia… The script is said to focus on the backstory of Furiosa, played by Oscar winner Charlize Theron.
Miller has previously revealed that there are two sequels in development, but he’s also stated that Theron’s Furiosa character may not make a return. Miller has also indicated that he’d prefer to work on a smaller project before coming back to the franchise. And this direction doesn’t really match the history of the franchise, which has avoided the continuous narrative angle. For now, consider this news a rumor — but a potentially interesting one.