Yahya Abdul-Mateen II Exits “Mad Max: Fury Road” Prequel “Furiosa”

This just in-

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II has reportedly left George Miller‘s upcoming “Mad Max: Fury Road” prequel film “Furiosa.” The “Aquaman” star was one of the first confirmed casting announcements for the project, and we’re very sad to see him depart.

Reports indicate there was a serious scheduling conflict, something akin to “a passion project” for Abdul-Mateen II. It’s worth noting however that the majority of Miller’s films (okay, pretty much all of them) end up with series delays, so, maybe that’s the true conflict.

UPDATE– The following morning, a report from THR broke the news that Adbul-Mateen II has launched his own production banner House Eleven10, and signed a deal with streaming giant Netflix.

Tom Burke (“True Things,” “The Show) has been tapped to replace Abdul-Mateen II.

Also, it sounds like casting is underway for additional leading roles, at least according to the Broken Hill Talent Agency in Australia. See their Facebook post about it here.

“Furiosa” will star Anya Taylor-Joy as a younger version of the character brought to screens by Charlize Theron in 2015. Chris Hemsworth also stars, but we don’t know anything about his role yet.

Jenny Beaven, who won an Oscar for her incredible costume work on “Fury Road” (and most recently did “Cruella” for Disney) has confirmed she’ll be designing. Tom Holkenborg, aka JunkieXL, will also be returning to the “Mad Max” family to score “Furiosa.”

At present, the film has a likely release date of “sometime in 2024.” We’ll let you know what we hear about this and other news from the Wasteland.