"Furiosa" Earns 6-Minute Standing Ovation at Cannes

Nine years after the debut of “Mad Max: Fury Road” in the South of France, George Miller is once again firing up the Croisette. 

The audience at the world premiere of the director’s prequel “Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga” went wild for his latest high-octane action movie, showering the movie with an enthusiastic six-minute standing ovation at the 77th Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday night.

Taylor-Joy blew kisses into the camera as the clapping continued, performing a theatrical bow. Hemsworth looked teary-eyed at the rapturous response.

“We worked very hard on this film, and it’ll be very interesting to see what you make of it,” Miller addressed the crowd. “Thank you for having us.”

Set in a post-apocalyptic world before the events of “Fury Road,” “Furiosa” stars Taylor-Joy, taking over in the title role from Charlize Theron. Early in the pic, a young Furiosa is kidnapped and imprisoned by a group of bandits led by Warlord Dementus (Hemsworth).

While “Fury Road” was known for its constant fighting between Charlize Theron and Tom Hardy, Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth were more laid-back as they arrived early at the premiere. 

Warner Bros. co-chairs Michael DeLuca and Pam Abdy walked the carpet, but Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav was notably absent from the festivities. 

Zaslav made the trek to Cannes last year with the HBO series “The Idol,” and he threw a lavish party at the Hotel du Cap in Antibes while his media conglomerate was cutting costs and issuing pink slips. 

The backlash that resulted from the bad optics of splurging on a big party at Cannes led Warner Bros. to pull back this year.

The party for “Furiosa” was held in an outdoor activation off the beach that was sponsored by Campari, the Italian liquor brand. The attendees were limited to the cast of the film, Cannes jury president Greta Gerwig, Cannes president Iris Knobloch, and power agents Bryan Lourd and Kevin Huvane.

The buzz surrounding “Furiosa” was largely positive with many festival-goers dazzled by Miller’s latest outing. 

The “Fury Road” prequel was one of the most-anticipated premieres out of this year’s Cannes. 

The fifth installment of the “Mad Max” franchise opens in theaters on May 24 in the United States from Warner Bros., which is hoping the film will match or exceed the $380 million global box office of “Fury Road.”