10 Insane Reasons Movies Were Nearly Shut Down

Nearly 30 years after the release of Road Warrior, director George Miller was given the opportunity of a lifetime. He got the chance to direct a new movie in the franchise, and while he managed to turn out one of the best chase movies in history, it almost didn't happen.

Initially, Miller cast Mel Gibson to reprise his role when production began in the early 2000s, but 9/11 pushed 20th Century Fox to pull the plug. Eventually, Miller's success with Happy Feet made it possible to get production going once more at Warner Bros., and Mad Max: Fury Road was back on track.

Filming took place in Namibia, and that meant all the actors, giant trucks, and everything else had to get shipped over there — at great expense. After nearly a year, Warner Bros. did shut down production, but a year after that, a different executive let the already overbudget filming continue.

The location was a nightmare to shoot in, and Tom Hardy fought Miller through most of the shoot. The ballooning budget nearly forced another final shutdown, but Miller was able to keep it going.

Doing so nearly killed him, as the director was emaciated by the time filming was complete.