Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga star Chris Hemsworth revealed how his warlord look, including a prosthetic nose, helped him fully transform into Wasteland baddie Dementus.
“The nose, the beard, the kind of wig, all the sort of prosthetics and the costume, everything was just, look — any of that helps you kind of get out the way of yourself,” Hemsworth said in an interview with MovieMaker. “The more you can cut loose of yourself and be completely taken on a journey through what the hair and makeup, costume, the sets, have to offer — it makes your job so much easier.”
Hemsworth’s villainous role is a complete departure from his Marvel Cinematic Universe days as Thor. Similarly, he praised director George Miller‘s use of practical sets on location which made the actor’s performance more effective on screen.
“Look at these costumes, look at these sets. We just gotta not screw up our lines now and not get in the way of it all,” Hemsworth said. “So it was like another prop, all of it. And when I would look in the mirror, I’d go, ‘I don’t see myself anymore. This is a great thing.’ So then you start to think differently, start reacting differently, and there’s a knock-on effect to that.”
Miller’s direction went beyond just wild action sequences in the Wasteland. Hemsworth recalls the legendary Mad Max director striking intense conversations with the cast about their response to a post-apocalyptic life in a hypothetical real-world setting.
“Can you afford yourself those emotions in an environment like that? And does that justify the actions that occur,” Hemsworth said. “It’s easy to sort of, from the outside, point the finger and say that’s a barbaric thing to do, and what violence and aggression. That’s just, like, my character. But then you go, well, look what’s on the line . . . it sort of begins to stimulate or provoke those questions in an audience, hopefully, and how would you react in that situation? For some, that individual is the villain, to some, it’s the hero, and I love that. I love that conversation.”
What is Furiosa about?
Set 15 years before the events of Mad Max: Fury Road, Furiosa stars Anya Taylor-Joy in a tale that sees the future war captain caught in the middle of a battle between two warring tyrants in the Wasteland. The movie stars Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth alongside Tom Burke, Alyla Browne, Nathan Jones, and Angus Simpson. Miller directed and co-wrote the screenplay with Nico Lathouris.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga opens in theaters on May 24.
