Mad Max: Fury Road Director Details Feud Between Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron

Mad Max: Fury Road director George Miller has lifted the lid on a bitter feud that escalated during production of the hit 2015 movie.

Speaking with Variety, Miller says co-stars Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron were engaged in a feud on Mad Max: Fury Road that had repercussions across the set.

“Tom has a damage to him but also a brilliance that comes with it, and whatever was going on with him at the time, he had to be coaxed out of his trailer,” reveals Miller.

“Whereas Charlize was incredibly disciplined – a dancer by training, which told in the precision of her performance – and always the first one on set...I’m an optimist, so I saw their behavior as mirroring their characters, where they had to learn to cooperate in order to ensure mutual survival.”

Miller doesn’t delve into exactly what drove the pair apart, besides fundamental differences in character. Despite their differences, however, it resulted in a film that won widespread acclaim. It’s the highest-grossing Mad Max film with $380 million worldwide against a reported budget of roughly $170 million.

That said, Miller is keen to stress he doesn’t tolerate unprofessionalism. “There’s no excuse for it, and I think there’s a tendency in this business to use great performances as an excuse for other disruption that could be avoided.”

Meanwhile, George Miller teases another new Mad Max film: “we have a whole story.”