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Mad Max: Fury Road is one of the best modern action movies, and its prequel, Furiosa, may maintain that standard. Director George Miller earns and deserves much of the credit for its excellence. However, the Australian auteur surrounded himself with dedicated and talented professionals who helped his vision shine. Legendary cinematographer John Seale helped capture Fury Road‘s look. Celebrated stunt performer Guy Norris arranged and enacted the film’s best practical effects. One won’t return for the prequel, while the other changed roles.
John Seale Retired Again
Furiosa won’t share a cinematographer with Mad Max: Fury Road. John Seale announced his retirement almost a decade ago. His career spanned 34 years at that point. Dean Semler, the cinematographer behind Mad Max 2 and Beyond Thunderdome, stepped away from Fury Road during the preparation period. George Miller approached Seale to fill the void. They first worked together in the 1992 drama Lorenzo’s Oil. Seale saw Fury Road‘s spectacular blockbuster epic as a perfect final film. He later decided he missed smaller productions and returned seven years later to shoot Miller’s Three Thousand Years of Longing. Miller approached Seale for Furiosa after his success on Fury Road. He recalled his answer in an interview with J. Kim Murphy for Variety, “He was very lovely, but I still had to pass on it. We’ve got some beautiful grandchildren. I want to spend time with them.”
The production cycle for Furiosa has been long but pales compared to Mad Max: Fury Road. Miller conceived the concept in 1987, but global events and Mel Gibson forced the production into development hell. This extended creative process gave Miller enough prep time to storyboard around 3,500 prospective images. He and the five artists he hired had the film’s look planned before he wrote the script. John Seale stepped into production with an auteur who helpfully drew the entire movie on boards for him. An uninformed observer might assume that Seale brought little to the film. A look at Furiosa and its action set pieces in the trailer suggests noticeable differences from his absence. Simon Duggan, best known for DPing Hacksaw Ridge, brings a less impressive resume to the prequel. From Seale’s love of zooms to his inexperience with digital cameras, his hand was distinct and will be missed.
Guy Norris Has Crashed His Last Car
Alongside Miller and Seale, Guy Norris contributed to Mad Max: Fury Road‘s most spectacular moments. Norris is the stunt coordinator, second-unit director, and stunt performer. Norris drove the Interceptor as Max Rockatansky’s double in the opening crash. He plowed a ten-ton truck going 60mph into another pre-crashed 16-wheeler. Norris saw that spectacular stunt as the perfect final act of his career as a performer. He won’t be operating the cars, trucks, or motorcycles in Furiosa. He will still coordinate and lead a team for the film, but his days in the driver’s seat are over. That loss likely won’t affect the finished product as part of the job requires either playing unnamed characters or mimicking other performers. It does, however, say something fascinating about Mad Max‘s legacy.
Guy Norris joined the Mad Max franchise in The Road Warrior almost 40 years ago. He became a stuntman at 18 after training under Max Aspin, a performer who stood in for Mel Gibson in the original Mad Max. Norris rode motorcycles and flew out of canons for traveling stunt shows across Australia. At 21, Aspin introduced him to George Miller, and he joined the crew of Mad Max 2. Norris played Bearclaw Mohawk, one of Lord Humungus’s Marauders. He stood in for Mel as his mentor did before him. Decades later, Norris worked on 303 stunts for Miller’s Fury Road. Norris’s involvement in Furiosa’s action will remain a nod to the franchise’s legacy. He’s still one of the best there is. A new, young stuntman behind the wheel might not impact the prequel, but it’s still a joy to know Bearclaw Mohawk is still on the project.
The director of photography and second-unit director are often thankless positions. Hardcore fans might know their name, but the usual press cycle only mentions the directors and stars. As the world prepares to judge the follow-up to one of the most compelling action films of all time, it’s critical to consider the artists who helped Fury Road succeed. Spare a thought for Guy Norris and John Seale as Furiosa employs new and old talent in their place. It takes more than drawings to make a car crash look that good.
