Furiosa ending explained: Director George Miller breaks down 'atypical' scene

It's in no small part due to these intricately orchestrated, expertly executed sequences that the film has received such a glut of glowing reviews, but for all that those high-octane scenes are breathtaking, the film's most pivotal moment is a much more muted affair.

In the closing moments, Furiosa (Anya Taylor-Joy) and Dementus (Chris Hemsworth) finally come face to face for the first time since her childhood – with the pair of them squaring off alone in the Wasteland in a relatively low-key confrontation devoid of much of the noise that has come before.

Speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com about why he opted to end the film in this way, George Miller explained: "Well, number one, that's where the story took me.

"And then I think it was just… something was really interesting, you're building up to the climax, which is essentially two characters who meet each other years before and then they have to play out this scene."

He went on to describe the scene as "very minimalist" and "very elemental", and said that putting it together was a "really interesting exercise".

He continued: "We shot that almost at the end, I think it was pretty much almost the last thing we shot. And it was really interesting building up to that – rehearsing, reworking the screenplay, and the blocking and doing all of that.

"And I remember sitting there, watching the monitors - as it was being shot, we had two cameras on them, so we could [do] cross shooting [and] they were free to play with it.

"And then I realised, 'Wait a minute. I'm just losing myself.' And I had forgotten what I was meant to be doing there. I was meant to be watching as a director and giving notes, but I was lost in what the two of them were doing to each other!"

He went on: "I found that really interesting. And, you know, someone said to me, 'Oh, you stuck the landing. They stuck the landing on this.' And I think it was interesting to bring the climax of the movie in an atypical... do an atypical scene."

If you've watched the scene in question and still have one or two questions needing answered, read on to have the Furiosa ending explained.

Furiosa ending explained

How does Furiosa get revenge on Dementus?

After tracking down Dementus at the end of the movie, Furiosa beats him and reminds him who she is – telling him she was the little girl he kidnapped all those years ago when he had forced her to watch her mother burn alive.

Although he initially appears not to recognise her – or at least claims not to – his demeanour changes when she takes his teddy bear, and he tries to talk her out of killing him by appealing to the things he believes they have in common.

Furiosa is not to be dissuaded and goes ahead with her plan of vengeance, but what is less clear is exactly how she enacts her revenge.

Instead of showing us exactly what happens at the end of the confrontation, we are told of a few different scenarios that have passed into legend – some say she shot him, some say she killed him using her motorcycle, and so on.

Finally, we are told that Furiosa had actually planted a seed in Dementus's body – a seed which originated from her homeland and which she had been carrying around with her since her childhood.

According to the story, Dementus is not killed, but lives in great pain with the seed growing through his now tainted body.

Whether this is actually what happened or is simply part of the myth-making aspect which has always been at the heart of the Mad Max franchise is left up to the viewer – but it's certainly a striking end to the film.

How does Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga lead into Fury Road?

At the very end of the film, we jump forward in time and see Furiosa going out to the now fully grown tree and picking some fruit from it.

She then takes this fruit to Immortan Joe's wives and gives it to them as they prepare to sneak onto her War Rig and hatch their escape, which takes us directly into the events of Mad: Max Fury Road.

During the closing credits, snippets are shown from various scenes in Fury Road, which will no doubt whet the appetites for fans to watch the 2015 film all over again.

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga was released in UK cinemas on Friday 24th May 2024.

Check out more of our Film coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.