The Immortan and a Madman: An Interview with Lachy Hulme
Photo: Universal Pictures Australia
Lachy Hulme had some big shoes to fill … quite literally.
When George Miller announced plans to make a prequel to his triumphant Mad Max: Fury Road focusing on the origins of the heroine Furiosa, the villainous Immortan Joe was confirmed to be a supporting player. In Fury Road, the role was powerfully portrayed by franchise stalwart Hugh Keays-Byrne. However, the actor passed away before he could reprise his legendary performance. This caused a dilemma for Miller. The character was a prominent part of the story, but if he were to remain included, the next person to don the skeleton-smile mask would have to honour the man who first brought the terrifying warlord to life.
Hulme, a seasoned performer well regarded for his work in Howzat! Kerry Packer's War and Offspring, was already tapped to play Rizzdale Pell, a gang member of Chris Hemsworth's Dementus. But in the tradition of the Mad Max saga, he would receive dual status when selected to take up the Immortan mantle. His two characters exude exceedingly dissimilar energies, but he proves a worthy addition to the wasteland on both fronts. As Immortan Joe, you can tell he did his homework. Hulme's presence is nearly indistinguishable from Keays-Byrne's, and he knows the power of allowing his eyes to do the talking. While as the frenzied Rizzdale, he flies off the handle to delightful effect with the other members of Dementus' horde.
The Mad Max films have continually provided a glorious channel for Australian talent to flex their manic muscles, and Hulme has taken his opportunity by the horns. Following the film's world premiere, I spoke with him about saluting Hugh Keays-Byrne, showcasing a different side to the Immortan, and what went into becoming both of his characters. This conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.
CONNOR DALTON: You play two characters in this film, and I want to start with Immortan Joe. He is not only one of the most iconic creations of this series but, I'd argue, of cinema. How did you obtain such an honour?
LACHY HULME: Begging, borrowing, stealing, and a lot of sucking up. It came to me when Dr George [Miller] first sent me the script. Somebody needed to step into Hugh [Keays-Byrne's] shoes to stand up for the great man, so we talked very early in pre-production about me doing both roles. I'd been offered Rizzdale Pell, but [playing Immortan Joe] didn't really come my way until about two or three months into the shoot when Dr George rang me and said, 'Hey, you know that idea you had of playing both parts? Are you still interested?' I said, 'Yes, I certainly am,' and that's how it happened.
DALTON: The process of becoming the character looks incredibly extensive. What was it like putting on that costume for the first time?
HULME: Well, first of all, you learn that you don't wear the costume — the costume wears you. It's a beast of a thing. It's not uncomfortable; it's just incredibly heavy and in the weirdest places. The boots are incredibly heavy, the skirt is incredibly heavy, and the rebreather on the back of the neck is incredibly heavy. And with the wig and everything, your peripheral vision basically goes out the window. So it's kind of like being the Tin Man without any oil in the joints when you first start wearing it.
Thank God for the incredible crew and cast that we had, who were amazing and supportive, sometimes in a very literal sense. It would take seven of them to help me sit down, just in case I flipped over onto my back. And because of the rebreather, I probably would have snapped my neck. But you get used to it. If you go back and watch Fury Road — and this just boggles my mind — you see Hugh Keays-Byrne in that full rig running. He actually has scenes where he's running, and I could barely get up to a decent pace walk. So I give full props to the late great Hugh Keays-Byrne. I don't know how he did it.
DALTON: He portrayed the character so wonderfully in Fury Road, and I'm sure you analysed his performance before stepping in. When revisiting what he originated, was there anything you particularly noticed that you made sure to carry over?
HULME: You got to bear in mind, Connor, I'm a Mad Max fanatic. Let's be very clear: you're talking to a nerd (laughs). I went to the Melbourne premiere of Fury Road in 2015, and the thing I remember the most is when Nux, Nicholas Hoult's character, starts screaming, 'He looked at me! He looked at me!' When you see the Immortan. He glances back over his shoulder in the Gigahorse, his big double Cadillac beast of a car, and it was those eyes. That's what stuck with me the most, and that's what I said to Dr George. What he was doing was effectively pushing through the costume through his eyes. That's what you need to be able to do with this character. That's what's going to bring him to life. It's all in the eyes. That's the first thing, and I knew how to do the voice because I used to jokingly scream, 'You are awaited!' At people at parties years before Furiosa came around.
The other thing I did when Dr George said, 'Do you want to do it?' And I said, 'You betcha, boss!' Was I went back home, got my Blu-ray box set of the Mad Max films out, and went to the special features for Fury Road. This is probably the worst thing in the world to say, but I like a cigarette occasionally, and Hugh Keays-Byrne, bless him, liked his little Italian Cheroot cigars, and I thought, 'How do you smoke in the costume with the maw over the face?' Sure enough, one of the first things that popped up was Hugh lifting the maw over his eyes so he could have a puff of a smoke, and I thought, 'Oh, alright, I've got that character down' (laughs). You got to think about it this way, man: I wasn't playing Immortan Joe; I was playing Hugh Keays-Byrne playing Immortan Joe. That's how I approached it.
DALTON: That said, the nature of this story shows a different side to him. He isn't on a rampage to reclaim his wives; he is managing an empire with a calculated stillness.
HULME: Yeah, what we're seeing here is not a man full of rage and vengeance, as you point out, mate, which is what we see in Fury Road. We're much more seeing what I would say is the CEO side of the Immortan — the man who has put together this triangle of power between the Citadel, the Bullet Farm, and Gas Town. He's managing this empire as best he can, but suddenly, you've got Dementus swaggering into this mix, thinking he can do a better job. And like any CEO, when you perceive a threat like that, which is effectively a hostile takeover, you take care of business. Of course, in the wasteland, that means a lot of bloodshed. So, yes, it was very much taking a step back from the anger because the script dictates that. The story we're telling is of a mad world, the Mad Max world, and Dementus creating a situation that needs to be dealt with. He is an opportunist that needs to be cast out.
DALTON: As mentioned, Immortan Joe isn't the only role you have in the film. You also portray the excellently named Rizzdale Pell, a member of Dementus' gang. It isn't uncommon for actors to have dual roles in the Mad Max series, but I believe you're the first to play both in the same title. How was it pulling double duty?
HULME: Well, it had great advantages and one big disadvantage. The great advantage of playing the dual roles is that I'm playing two characters on opposite sides of the fence, meaning I got to work with pretty much every actor in the film. That was a great pleasure and a thrill because I would not have had scenes with Anya Taylor-Joy as Furiosa and Tom Burke as Praetorian Jack if I wasn't playing the Immortan. And obviously, as Rizzdale, I've got plenty of scenes with Chris [Hemsworth] and the whole Dementus horde. That was the great advantage. What a blessing to be able to work with everybody.
The one disadvantage was I got to work with myself, and believe me, Connor, I'm really not that good. I watched myself one day going, 'Nope, he doesn't know what he's doing. He's shown up late, he doesn't know his lines, he's hungover, he's hopeless.' So there was that moment of just looking at myself and going, 'He doesn't deserve to be here at all.' But there are positives and negatives with everything in life, mate, especially in moviemaking.
DALTON: I'd say you're being a bit harsh on yourself!
HULME: (laughs) Well, I'm allowed to be!
DALTON: I love the look of Rizzdale Pell. He has a real burnt-out 1980s rockstar flavour.
HULME: (laughs) Wow! Okay, I never thought about him that way! Go on!
DALTON: Did you have any input on his appearance?
HULME: With the costume, yes, a little bit. We had Jenny Beavan, our three-time Academy Award-winning brilliant costume designer, so the only contribution I made was around Rizzdale's neck. You'll notice he's got a leather belt with a silver sort of ring in it. I wanted to have that. I said, 'I want something resembling what a Catholic priest would wear around his neck, considering the name Rizzdale Pell.'
That was it for the costume, but in terms of the face, I was asked by the art, makeup, and wardrobe departments to take a selfie and to send it to them. I was thinking, 'What do they need that for?' Well, I showed up to set, and there was this incredible rendered portrait of Rizzdale with his missing eye, the beard, and the hair hat, which is made of human scalps to hide his diseased one. It was my face, but it was just this beautifully painted thing. I've still got a copy of it. All of that design came from Lesley Vanderwalt, the head of makeup, and Brydie Stone, my makeup artist. That team put it all together, and I was like, 'I have no complaints. If that's what I'm looking like, that's what I'm going to look like.'
DALTON: You noted earlier that you share many scenes with Chris Hemsworth, who is in fine deranged form as Dementus. What was it like working with him as both his disciple and rival?
HULME: Oh, look, I've known Chris for many, many years, well before his Hollywood success, and I know his mum and dad really well, so he is a very old friend of mine. This is the first time we've worked together, and he was incredibly focused, but he's a big-hearted, warm-hearted guy. You got to understand that. The thing is, when you're working with your fellow actors, it's not about staying in character, per se; it's about backing each other up to get the best out of each other, and Chris was 110% focused. He was fully present. He was ready to work, and when you're playing a big, brassy, crazy character like Dementus, you've got to be prepared to fall flat on your face, and the only way you can do that is by knowing that the cast and crew and everyone around you are backing you up. Chris went full throttle, and it shows. You've seen the film; he's not mucking around. He's up there giving it his all.
At the opening in Sydney, we were having a drink at the bar afterwards, and I just said, 'Mate, there are a couple of scenes in there which are just outstanding.' There was one that just tore my head off when I saw it. Seeing it on the big screen, I just went, 'Wow! That's fantastic work.' It's like working with a professional athlete. He just worked really hard and pushed himself. But should he stumble, should he trip, should he fall, everybody was there to catch him, pick him up, dust him off, and say, 'Let's go again.' That's the environment you work on with a film under the leadership of Dr George Miller. He sets the pace and the environment, which is complete professionalism and respect for one another. No bullshit, no egos, let's get to work and let's make a great movie, that's the attitude.
DALTON: Where does the experience of making this film rank amongst the numerous highlights of your career?
HULME: I've wanted to be in a Mad Max film since I was a little kid, and when the phone call came from Dr George saying, 'Hey, mate, I'm doing this new instalment, are you interested?' All I can say is it's the only time in my life that I burst into tears of joy from getting a work phone call. It was like I manifested it through dreaming about it since I was young and saw the first Mad Max on VHS. He said, 'I'm going to send you the script with the character of Rizzdale Pell,' which made me burst out laughing when I heard the name of the character, and I think any Australian actor worth his or her salt would want to be in one of these movies, especially this new chapter. Connor, what can I tell you? I'm gobsmacked, overwhelmed, thrilled to the back teeth, jumping up and down like a school kid. Where does it rank with all the other things I've done? Pretty highly!
This article was originally published by FilmInk