10 Movies That Spent Decades In Development Hell (And Still Lived Up To The Hype)

From the late seventies to mid eighties, George Miller's Mad Max franchise built its name on a revenge tale and practical stunts on the deadly roads of a crumbling world. The action-packed road chase franchise hadn't seen a new entry since Beyond Thunderdome in 1985. After acquiring the rights from Warner Bros, Miller set out to work on the new project.

However, a fourth entry resided in development hell for two decades, facing many delays and challenges. Initial efforts began in 1997, but due to the need for an authentic desert environment, filming was postponed due to both 9/11 in 2001 and later the Iraq War in 2003. Eventually in 2010, Tom Hardy was cast in the title role and production moved forward.

George Miller's long-awaited return to the action franchise he created turned out to be a superb thrill-ride that put many of its modern contemporaries to shame. The sheer thrill of seeing real, practical stuntwork and full-scale vehicles clashing across the dusty deserts ranked as some of the finest action in film over the last decade.

Fury Road made one of the most successful returns of any franchise in recent years, with a director and crew who knew exactly what made the series work.