George Miller, director of Mad Max: Fury Road, has explained what really happened between actors Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron on the set of the movie.
Their feud was widely reported on at the time, with some reports alleging an ‘aggressive’ confrontation between the two as well as Theron requesting private security on set.
The pair were the stars of the movie
Although the post-apocalyptic thriller was perceived by many as one of the best action movies when it came out in 2015, things seem to have not been as great behind the scenes.
Hardy and Theron starred in the movie as Max and Furiosa respectively, two people who find themselves having to get over their differences to become allies.
The tension between the two recently resurfaced
The feud between the two actors resurfaced in 2022 when journalist Kyle Buchanan released the book Blood, Sweat and Chrome: The Wild and True Story of Mad Max: Fury Road, where she featured interviews with the cast of the movie.
Nicholas Hoult spoke about the feud
In her book, it was apparent that Nicholas Hoult, co-star to the pair on the movie, felt the negative energy on set, having referred to Hardy and Theron’s working relationship as ‘tense’.
“It was kind of like you’re on your summer holidays and the adults in the front of the car are arguing,” he said.
It was reported that Theron asked for a mediator
Vanity Fair reported that things between the two got so intense that Theron requested for producer Denise Di Novi to fly out to the set and act as a mediator between her and Hardy.
This was allegedly after an ‘aggressive’ conversation with Hardy over him being late to work made her feel unsafe. Hardy denied having had such a confrontation.
Miller later weighed in on the situation
The movie’s director would later share his perspective on the feud. Speaking to The Telegraph, he said that the two approached work differently.
“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,” he said.
Meanwhile, Theron approached it differently
“Charlize was incredibly disciplined – a dancer by training, which told in the precision of her performance – and always the first one on set,” Miller added.
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“I’m an optimist, so I saw their behavior as mirroring their characters, where they had to learn to co-operate in order to ensure mutual survival,” he said.
Miller alluded to the two being disruptive
The director pointed out the pair’s relationship being disruptive for the making of the movie, saying, “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.”
Both actors have since spoken about the shoot
Hardy and Theron have since reflected on shooting the movie in the desert, expressing that it was a difficult process.
“It was horrible,” Theron said. “We should not have done that; we should have been better. I can own up to that.”
Hardy has also reflected on it
Tom Hardy has also since admitted he didn’t handle the situation as best he could.
He said, “What she needed was a better, perhaps more experienced partner in me. That’s something that can’t be faked. I’d like to think that now that I’m older and uglier, I could rise to that occasion.”