Tom Burke still “can’t believe” he’s in Furiosa

Tom Burke has yet another “pinch me” moment due to his involvement in George Miller’s Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.

The Mank star plays Praetorian Jack in the Mad Max prequel Imperator Furiosa, with the title character brought to life by Anya Taylor-Joy.

Speaking exclusively to The digital spyBurke recalled how he was cast in the highly anticipated film, which serves as the origin story for Charlize Theron’s anti-heroine in 2015’s Fury Road.

Related: Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga review – Anya Taylor-Joy excels in stunning prequel

Miller was reportedly given a list of names of potential actors for the role of Praetorian Jack. When he landed on Burke’s name, which was fourth on the list, the director stopped and decided he had found the one.

“He only told me that a few days ago, I didn’t know that,” Burke said.

“I mean, I knew he said ‘That Guy,’ one way or another, but yeah, I didn’t know he stopped looking.

“I can’t believe I’m here. I just look at (the poster) and I’m in that movie. It’s amazing.”

Reflecting on Jack and Furiosa’s relationship, Burke said their connection is “key” to the story written by Miller and Nico Lathouris, who also co-wrote Fury Road.

“I felt that — not to aggrandize my own (character), it was more about responsibility than anything else — that was essential to making the story work,” he said.

“It was actually nice to worry about that rather than how you play a certain genre or is it cool or whatever else you might go to in a kind of panic moment thinking- just how you tell that story.”

Related: George Miller Knows Exactly When Anya Taylor-Joy Became Furiosa

After its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, Furiosa made headlines for a colossal stunt sequence known as “Stowaway to Nowhere,” which took 78 days over nine months to shoot.

Unlike his Furiosa co-star Chris Hemsworth, who was happy to leave him out, Burke said he felt some sadness once he and Taylor-Joy finished filming the massive scene.

“I was very sad,” he said. “He was like, ‘OK, I did it, but I could have gone on forever.’ I enjoyed doing it.”

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga opens in theaters on May 24.

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