It is something Keays-Byrne had used to make Toecutter stand out in Mad Max (which was tragically lost in translation by an American dub that removed his bizarre articulations). The bizarre, ever-changing accent he used as both Toecutter and Immortan Joe makes it hard to place the character’s origins and makes the figure feel more unhinged.
MAD MAX TOECUTTER SERIES
Series star Hugh Keays-Byrne gained the role of Immortan Joe thanks to his unforgettable turn as Toecutter in the original Mad Max, and the actor brought with him a strange technique that made the earlier villain so memorable. The Road Warrior’s villain is, for all his bluster, aware he is an opportunist exploiting desperate people for his own gain, whereas the Fury Road villain truly believes his hype, even if the ending may prove Immortan Joe is very much mortal.įinally, Mad Max’s original bad guy - and still one of the best marriages of goofy, over-the-top villainy with a sense of genuinely unhinged menace - gave the most obvious and direct inspiration to Immortan Joe decades after his screen debut. However, once again this character builds on the earlier villain by giving Immortan Joe a more stable civilization to lead, making it more believable the struggling masses of the Citadel would be afraid of his power. Originally intended to be a former cop (and, in a devastating twist, Max's now-unhinged former partner), The Road Warrior’s Lord Humungus is a clear inspiration for Immortan Joe (a former military general) claiming to be a moral authority over civilians of the wasteland and giving himself an impressive honorific when in reality, he's another bullying tyrant. His attempts to build a dystopian society around might and cruelty make for a more interesting social commentary than the first film’s comparatively typical baddies. The Road Warrior’s lead villain is a more rounded, resonant antagonist than the first film’s biker gang leader Toecutter. A scarier, stranger, and more memorable distillation of his predecessors’ collective traits, Immortan Joe thus became the strongest antagonist Mad Max has faced so far.
The Road Warrior, Beyond Thunderdome, and the first film's critiques of authoritarian societies, the militarization of the police, far-right ideologues, and future environmental destruction come together in Immortan Joe, an unforgettable villain who epitomizes the overarching themes of Mad Max. Related: How An Australian Cult Thriller Inspired Mad Maxįrom the terrifying Toecutter to the comparatively benign Aunt Entity, each Mad Max villain provided part of the character, tactics, and outlook of Immortan Joe and his cult of zealous followers. The progression of the franchise's themes can be charted by looking back on its many villains and seeing the part each had to play in forming the persona of Fury Road’s Immortan Joe and his War Boys. Over time, the stories of each Mad Max sequel have grown more outlandish and over-the-top while still holding onto the canny social commentary of the original. The franchise may have begun fairly grounded, with the original Mad Max only being set in the future to save on the cost of locations.
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