A blood-pumping new trailer dropped this week for Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, the upcoming prequel to the 2015 smash hit Mad Max: Fury Road.
Fury Road starred Charlize Theron as Imperator Furiosa, an avenging warrior who leads a tribe of women in a relentlessly macho, post-apocalyptic wasteland.
Now a new film is on the verge of release, relaying the heartrending origin story that forges Furiosa into a hardened, ruthless killer.
Anya Taylor-Joy plays the title role, starting off as a long-haired beauty who turns into the cropped-haired, warpainted bruiser Fury Road fans will instantly recognize.
The warlord Dementus, played by Chris Hemsworth, kidnaps her from her luscious, green homeland and out of the arms of her 'magnificent' mother.
A blood-pumping new trailer dropped this week for Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga , the upcoming prequel to the 2015 smash hit Mad Max: Fury Road
Fury Road starred Charlize Theron (pictured) as Imperator Furiosa, an avenging warrior who leads a tribe of women in a relentlessly macho, post-apocalyptic wasteland
Anya Taylor-Joy plays the title role, starting off as a long-haired beauty who turns into the cropped-haired, warpainted bruiser Fury Road fans will instantly recognize
The warlord Dementus, played by Chris Hemsworth, kidnaps her from her luscious, green homeland and out of the arms of her 'magnificent' mother
She and a friend of hers are seen as children, scampering playfully around a forest called the Green Place of Many Mothers, where they live.
However their adventures take them 'too far,' and Furiosa falls into the clutches of a marauding biker gang spearheaded by Demetrus.
Furiosa's mother sets off on her motorcycle through the desert and shoots at Demetrus' gang, pursing them in a bid to get her daughter back.
'As a child, my world was forever changed,' says Furiosa's voiceover. 'My mother was magnificent - then he took it all from me.'
Abducted from her home, the little girl is hauled into a tent and presented to Dementus, who leers hungrily: 'Who do we have here?'
Chris Hemsworth brings back memories of his Thor character, sporting a beard and long hair and dressed in armor that flaunts his sculpted arms.
Dementus can be glimpsed tearing through the desert on a gleaming metal chariot pulled by a motorcycle, surrounded by a phalanx of his followers.
Over footage of young Furiosa in a cage and a muzzle, her voiceover says with steely determination: 'My childhood, my mother - I want them back.'
Furiosa's mother sets off on her motorcycle through the desert and shoots at Demetrus' gang, pursing them in a bid to get her daughter back
'As a child, my world was forever changed,' says Furiosa's voiceover: 'My mother was magnificent - then he took it all from me'
Abducted from her home, the little girl is hauled into a tent and presented to Dementus, who leers hungrily: 'Who do we have here?'
Chris Hemsworth brings back memories of his Thor character, sporting a beard and long hair and dressed in armor that flaunts his sculpted arms
Dementus can be glimpsed tearing through the desert on a gleaming metal chariot pulled by a motorcycle, surrounded by a phalanx of his followers
Over footage of young Furiosa in a cage and a muzzle, her voiceover says with steely determination: 'My childhood, my mother - I want them back'
Her face remains mostly covered while Furiosa performs some sort of tribal ritual for Dementus' biker gang - but her eyes are agleam with hatred.
Then a grown-up Furiosa, played as a young woman by Anya, is seen making a daring escape from the clutches of Dementus' men.
She climbs into a car and drives backward at full-speed through an archway, a split second before the gate comes down and impales the car pursuing her.
In a flashback, the young Furiosa is told by her mother: 'Whatever you have to do, however long it takes, promise you'll find your way home. Protect the Green Place.'
During her bid to follow her mother's parting wishes, the grown Furiosa hurtles through a string of hair-raising battles against Dementus.
Dementus and his gang are at that point waging a conflict with another warlord called Immortan Joe (Lachy Hulme) - later the villain of Mad Max: Fury Road.
During the events of the prequel, Immortan Joe is seen developing an alliance with Furiosa, who enters his employ on the basis of their common enemy.
Immortan Joe and Furiosa have a tête-à-tête in which she darkly tells him: 'If you find him, he's mine,' presumably talking about Dementus.
Her face remains mostly covered while Furiosa performs some sort of tribal ritual for Dementus' biker gang - but her eyes are agleam with hatred
Then a grown-up Furiosa, played as a young woman by Anya, is seen making a daring escape from the clutches of Dementus' men
In a flashback, the young Furiosa is told by her mother: 'Whatever you have to do, however long it takes, promise you'll find your way home'
During her bid to follow her mother's parting wishes, the grown Furiosa hurtles through a string of hair-raising battles against Dementus
Dementus and his gang are at that point waging a conflict with another warlord called Immortan Joe (Lachy Hulme) - later the villain of Mad Max: Fury Road
During the events of the prequel, Immortan Joe is seen developing an alliance with Furiosa, who enters his employ on the basis of their common enemy
Dementus's brutality is on display in the trailer, where he is seen taunting a pair of bound prisoners: 'Where are you going, so full of hope? There is no hope!'
In a show of his personal hardiness, Dementus is seen clinging to a ledge in spite of an avalanche of unused bullets flowing over him, threatening to loosen his grip.
Even when Dementus and Furiosa find themselves locked in a shootout, he appears to be thoroughly enjoying himself, whooping as he dodges one of her bullets.
He is not the only adversary Furiosa has to face - she also finds herself in the grip of one Rictus Erectus, played by Australian powerlifter Nathan Jones.
Furiosa eventually takes a knife to her luxuriously long locks and replaces them with the hairdo that the character's fans know and love.
In a show of his personal hardiness, Dementus is seen clinging to a ledge in spite of an avalanche of unused bullets flowing over him, threatening to loosen his grip
Even when Dementus and Furiosa find themselves locked in a shootout, he appears to be thoroughly enjoying himself, whooping as he dodges one of her bullets
Having turned into the formidable Imperator Furiosa, she confronts Dementus in the desert, staring down at him from the top of a dune and asking: 'Remember me?'
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga was directed by George Miller, who has directed all the Mad Max movies stretching back to the original in 1979
The movie will bow on May 23 in its native Australia before enjoying a wider release, including in the United States, one day later
In one mesmerizing hero shot, Anya can be seen appearing virtually indistinguishable from Charlize in Mad Max: Fury Road.
Having turned into the formidable Imperator Furiosa, she confronts Dementus in the desert, staring down at him from the top of a dune and asking: 'Remember me?'
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga was directed by George Miller, who has directed all the Mad Max movies stretching back to the original in 1979.
The movie will bow on May 23 in its native Australia before enjoying a wider release, including in the United States, one day later.
