Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome installments of the "Mad Max" series, "Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome" has influenced popular culture in various regards. The term "thunderdome" is now used in various contexts in which its meaning is similar to the sense in which it appears in the film. That is, a contest where the loser suffers a great hardship, though it has also come to mean, more generically, the state of the world following a nuclear apocalypse, or any place where chaos is the norm. Filmmaker Chris Weitz has cited the film as an influence. Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (also known as
Mad Max (franchise) of "Fury Road". In March 2015, during an interview with "Esquire" magazine, Hardy revealed that he was attached to star in three more "Mad Max" films following "Fury Road". After the release of "Fury Road", Miller announced that he would like to make a follow-up titled "Mad Max: The Wasteland", which he later clarified was "just a working title". Miller reaffirmed his intent to continue the franchise after reports to the contrary surfaced following an interview in January 2016. The series' protagonist, Max Rockatansky, was portrayed through the first three films by Mel Gibson. Tom Hardy took over the role