Mad Max received a polarized reception upon its release in April 1979, although it won three AACTA Awards and attracted a cult following, while its critical reputation has grown since. Filmed on a budget of A$0.4 million, it earned more than US$100 million worldwide in gross revenue, and held the "Guinness" record for most profitable film. The success of "Mad Max" has been credited for further opening up the global market to Australian New Wave films. The film became the first in the "Mad Max" series, giving rise to three sequels, "Mad Max 2" (1981), "Beyond Thunderdome" (1985), and "" (2015). "A
Mad Max: Fury Road Gibson would return as Max. That same month, British actor Tom Hardy was in negotiations to take the lead role of Max, while it was also announced that Charlize Theron would play a major role in the film. In June 2010, Hardy announced on "Friday Night with Jonathan Ross" that he would play the title role. In July 2010, Miller announced plans to shoot two "Mad Max" films back-to-back, entitled "Mad Max: Fury Road" and "Mad Max: Furiosa". Weta Digital was originally involved with the film when it was scheduled for a 2012 release. The company was to be handling