Mad Max co-stars Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron reveal ‘tense’ feud while filming Fury Road

‘I was in over my head in many ways,’ actor admits

Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron have opened up about their infamous feud on the set of Mad Max: Fury Road.

The two actors starred in the 2015 post-apocalyptic drama together and were known to have not got on, with Theron admitting in 2015 that the pair “f***in’ went at it” during filming.

Speaking to The New York Times, Hardy addressed his tense relationship with Theron, saying: “I think in hindsight, I was in over my head in many ways. The pressure on both of us was overwhelming at times.”

He continued: “What she needed was a better, perhaps more experienced, partner in me. That’s something that can’t be faked. I’d like to think that now that I’m older and uglier, I could rise to that occasion.”

With time, Theron has also learnt to understand what her former co-star was going through, admitting: “In retrospect, I didn’t have enough empathy to really, truly understand what he must have felt like to step into Mel Gibson’s shoes. That is frightening!”

“I think because of my own fear, we were putting up walls to protect ourselves instead of saying to each other, ‘This is scary for you, and it’s scary for me, too. Let’s be nice to each other.’ In a weird way, we were functioning like our characters: Everything was about survival.”

Meanwhile, Zoe Kravitz, who played Toast the Knowing, shared her own experience of the clash.

“Tom really had moments of frustration, of anger,” she said. “Charlize did too, but I feel like he’s the one who really took it out on [director George Miller] the most, and that was a bummer to see.

“But you know, in some ways, you also can’t blame him, because a lot was being asked of these actors and there were a lot of unanswered questions,” she reasoned.

Two sequels to the 2015 film are currently in the works, with both Hardy and Theron expected to return.