George Miller | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Miller in 2017 | |
| Born | (1945-03-03)3 March 1945 (age 80) Chinchilla, Queensland, Australia |
| Education | Sydney Boys High School,Ipswich Grammar School |
| Alma mater | University of New South Wales |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1971–present |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives | Bill Miller (brother) |
| Awards | Full list |
George Miller (born 3 March 1945) is an Australian filmmaker. Over the course of four decades he has received critical and popular success, and is widely known for creating and directing every film in theMad Max franchise starting in 1979, including two entries which are consideredtwo of the greatest action films of all time according to Metacritic.[1] He has earnednumerous accolades including anAcademy Award from six nominations in five different categories.
His directing career started in Australia with the first threeMad Max films between 1979 and 1985 with his friend and producing partnerByron Kennedy, after which he transitioned to Hollywood withThe Witches of Eastwick (1987). His family dramaLorenzo's Oil (1992) earned him his first Academy Award nomination after which he produced and co-wroteBabe (1995) and directed the sequelBabe: Pig in the City (1998). He would venture into animation withHappy Feet (2006), for which he won theAcademy Award for Best Animated Feature, and the sequelHappy Feet Two (2011), before returning toMad Max with the acclaimedMad Max: Fury Road (2015), which went on to win six Academy Awards, andFuriosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024).
Trained in medicine at theUniversity of New South Wales, Miller worked as a physician for several years before entering the film industry. Miller and Kennedy are the founders of the production houseKennedy Miller Mitchell. Since the death of Kennedy in 1983, his main producers have been his younger brotherBill Miller andDoug Mitchell. Other accolades include aBritish Academy Film Award, aCritics Choice Awards, aGolden Globe Award and sixAustralian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts Awards.
Miller was born on 3 March 1945[2] inChinchilla, Queensland, toGreek immigrant parents Jim and Angela Miller. Jim (aka Dimitrios) was born on the Greek island ofKythira nearMitata. Jim's fatheranglicised his surname fromMiliotis toMiller when he emigrated to Australia in 1920. Angela's family wereGreek refugees fromAnatolia, displaced by the1923 population exchange.[3]
Miller attendedIpswich Grammar School and laterSydney Boys High School,[3] then studied medicine at theUniversity of New South Wales with his twin brother John. While in his final year at medical school (1971), he and his younger brother Chris made a one-minute short filmSt. Vincent's Revue Film that won the first prize in a student competition.[4]
In 1971, George attended a film workshop atMelbourne University where he met fellow studentByron Kennedy, with whom he formed a lasting friendship and production partnership, until Kennedy's death. In 1972, Miller completed his residency at Sydney'sSt Vincent's Hospital, spending his time off crewing on shortexperimental films. That same year, Miller and Kennedy foundedKennedy Miller Productions.[5] The pair subsequently collaborated on numerous works. After Kennedy died in 1983, Miller kept his name in the company. It was later renamed Kennedy Miller Mitchell in 2009 as a way to recognise producerDoug Mitchell's role in the company.[6]
Miller's first work, the short filmViolence in Cinema: Part 1 (1971), polarised critics, audiences and distributors so much that it was placed in the documentary category at the 1972Sydney Film Festival due to its matter-of-fact depiction of cinematic violence.[7] In 1979, Miller made his feature-length directorial debut withMad Max. Based on a script written by Miller and James McCausland in 1975, the film was independently financed by Kennedy Miller Productions and went on to become an international success.[5] As a result, the film spawned theMad Max series with two further sequels starringMel Gibson:Mad Max 2 also released asThe Road Warrior (1981) andMad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985).
During the time between the second and thirdMad Max films, Miller directed a remake of "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" as a segment for the anthology filmTwilight Zone: The Movie (1983). Despite not being involved or present, the infamoushelicopter crash shook him, leading to a re-evaluation of the stunt-work in his future films.[8] He also co-produced and co-directed many acclaimedminiseries for Australian television includingThe Dismissal (1983) andThe Cowra Breakout (1984).
In 1987, Miller directedThe Witches of Eastwick, starringJack Nicholson,Susan Sarandon,Cher andMichelle Pfeiffer. The film proved to be a troubling experience for Miller. "I quit the film twice and Jack [Nicholson] held me in there," said Miller. "He said, 'Just sit down, lose your emotion, and have a look at the work. If you think the work is good, stick with the film.' And he was a great man. I learnt more from him than anybody else I've worked with - he was extraordinary."[9] Nicholson also coached Miller to exaggerate his needs during the production, asking for 300 extras when he only needed 150, knowing that his producers would give him less than he requested.[10] The award-winning production designerPolly Platt also collaborated closely with Miller onThe Witches of Eastwick.Cher later said that prior to working on the film, Miller called her at home, the day after her 40th birthday, to inform her that he and Nicholson didn't want her in the film. She was deemed "too old and not sexy".[11]
FollowingThe Witches of Eastwick, Miller focused primarily on producing Australian projects.[12] His role as producer ofFlirting,Dead Calm and the TV miniseriesBangkok Hilton andVietnam, all starringNicole Kidman, was instrumental in the development of her career. Miller returned to directing with the release of the biographical medical dramaLorenzo's Oil (1992), which he co-wrote withNick Enright.[13] The film starredNick Nolte andSusan Sarandon. The film received critical acclaim[14] withVariety describing the film as a "true-life story brought to the screen intelligently and with passionate motivation by George Miller".[15] For his work on the film Miller was nominated for theAcademy Award andWriters Guild of America Award for Best Original Screenplay.[16][17] The following year Miller was hired to direct the science fiction drama filmContact based on the story byCarl Sagan andAnn Druyan.[18] After working on the film for over a year,Warner Bros. and Miller mutually agreed to part ways andRobert Zemeckis was eventually brought on to direct.[19]
In 1995 Miller produced and co-wrote the comedy-dramaBabe directed byChris Noonan. The film was a critical and financial success.[20][21] The film earned 7Academy Award nominations including for Miller forBest Adapted Screenplay.[22] Miller went on to write and direct its sequelBabe: Pig in the City (1998).[23]Chicago Sun-Times criticRoger Ebert gave the film four stars praising Miller's work on the sequel writing, "It outdoes itself with the sets and special effects that make up "the city." And it is still literate, humane and wicked. George Miller, who produced, directed and co-wrote the film, has improved and extended the ideas inBabe: Pig in the City, instead of being content to copy them."[24] CriticGene Siskel of theChicago Tribune named it the Best film of 1998.[25]
In 1995, Miller also producedVideo Fool for Love, a controversial and divisivecinema verité documentary shot on video by film editor Robert Gibson that deals with Gibson's personal life and relationship issues.[26]
Miller was also the creator of the animated jukebox musical filmHappy Feet (2006) about the life ofpenguins inAntarctica.[27] TheWarner Bros.-produced film was released in November 2006. It was a runaway box office success earning $363 million worldwide, and also brought Miller his fourthAcademy Award nomination, and his first win in the category ofBest Animated Feature.[28]Manohla Dargis ofThe New York Times praised the film writing, "Miller...shows a remarkable persistence of vision. Even in a story about singing-and-dancing fat and feather, Mr. Miller can't help but go dark and deep" adding, "[He] brings an unusual depth of feeling to his work as well as a distinct moral worldview".[29]
In 2007, Miller signed on to direct aJustice League film titledJustice League: Mortal.[30] While production was initially held up due to the2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike,[31] further production delays and the success ofThe Dark Knight led to Warner Bros. deciding to put the film on hold and pursue different options.[32] As a partnership between his production companyKennedy Miller Mitchell and Omnilab Media, George Miller co-founded Dr. D Studios, a Sydney-based digital animation studio in mid-2007.[33] In 2011, theHappy Feet sequelHappy Feet Two was released by Dr. D Studios.[34] But following the financially unsuccessful release ofHappy Feet Two and the long delay ofMad Max: Fury Road (2015), the studio closed down in 2013.[33][35]
In 2012, Miller began principal photography onMad Max: Fury Road, the fourth film in theMad Max series, after several years of production delays.[36]Fury Road starringTom Hardy andCharlize Theron was released on 15 May 2015.[37] The film became a box office success and was met with widespread critical acclaim with several critics calling itone of the greatest action films ever made.[38]A.O. Scott ofThe New York Times labeled it a "New York Times Critic's Pick" writing, "Miller has always stayed true to his scrappy, pragmatic roots. At 70, he has a master craftsman's intuitive sense of proportion and a visual artisan's mistrust of extraneous verbiage" adding, "It's all great fun, and quite rousing as well — a large-scale genre movie that is at once unpretentious and unafraid to bring home a message".[39] It went on to receive 10Academy Award nominations includingBest Picture, while Miller himself was nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Director.[40]
In October 2018 it was announced that Miller would directThree Thousand Years of Longing, which began filming in November 2020.[41] The film starringIdris Elba andTilda Swinton premiered at theCannes Film Festival in May 2022.[42]Peter Bradshaw ofThe Guardian described the film as "a heartfeltAladdin-esque adventure for grownups" adding, "Miller shows he is now doing one-for-him-and-one-that's-even-more-for-him. It's anArabian Nights-type fantasia which he has clearly been gagging to make for years".[43]Justin Chang ofNPR wrote that "Miller unveils an outlandish premise with a sly wit that's initially hard to resist" but added the film "ends on a muted, uncertain note".[44] The film was abox office bomb grossing $20 million worldwide off a budget of $60 million.[45][46]
In April 2017, Miller said that he and co-writer Nico Lathouris have finished two additional post-Fury Road scripts for theMad Max series. TheFury Road lead, Tom Hardy, is committed to the next sequel.[47] In 2015, and again in early 2017, Miller said "the fifth film in the franchise will be titledMad Max: The Wasteland."[47][48] In 2020, it was reported that Miller would next direct theMad Max spinoffFuriosa: A Mad Max Saga starringAnya Taylor-Joy andChris Hemsworth.[49] The film premiered at the2024 Cannes Film Festival to critical acclaim.[50][51]Manohla Dargis ofThe New York Times gave the film a "NYT Critic's Pick" declaring, "Miller is such a wildly inventive filmmaker that it's been easy to forget that he keeps making movies about the end of life as we know it. It's a blast watching his characters fight over oil, water and women, yet while I've long thought of him as a great filmmaker it's only withFuriosa that I now understand he's also one kick-ass prophet of doom."[52]
Miller was married to actressSandy Gore from 1985 to 1992; they have a daughter. He has been married to film editorMargaret Sixel since 1995. They have two sons.[53][needs update] Sixel has worked in some capacity on many of Miller's directorial efforts.[54] Miller is afeminist, having toldVanity Fair in May 2015, "I've gone from being very male dominant to being surrounded by magnificent women. I can't help but be a feminist."[55]
Miller is the patron of theAustralian Film Institute and theBrisbane International Film Festival, and a co-patron of theSydney Film Festival.[citation needed]
Miller has said many times that the 1940 version ofPinocchio is one of his favourite films.[56][57][58]
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Mad Max | Yes | Yes | No | |
| 1981 | Mad Max 2 | Yes | Yes | No | Also additional editor |
| 1983 | Twilight Zone: The Movie | Yes | No | No | Segment: "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" |
| 1985 | Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome | Yes | Yes | Yes | Co-directed withGeorge Ogilvie |
| 1987 | The Witches of Eastwick | Yes | No | No | |
| 1992 | Lorenzo's Oil | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 1995 | Babe | No | Yes | Yes | |
| 1997 | 40,000 Years of Dreaming | Yes | Yes | No | Documentary; also presenter |
| 1998 | Babe: Pig in the City | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2006 | Happy Feet | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2011 | Happy Feet Two | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2015 | Mad Max: Fury Road | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2022 | Three Thousand Years of Longing | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| 2024 | Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Producer
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | The Year My Voice Broke | |
| 1989 | Dead Calm | Also second unit director |
| 1991 | Flirting | |
| 1996 | Video Fool for Love | Documentary |
Other credits
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1978 | In Search of Anna | First assistant director |
| 1980 | The Chain Reaction | Second unit director (uncredited) and associate producer |
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | "St. Vincent's Revue Film" | Yes | Yes | |
| "Violence in the Cinema, Part 1" | Yes | Yes | ||
| 1974 | "The Devil in Evening Dress" | Yes | Yes |
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | The Dismissal | Yes | Yes | Yes | TV miniseries |
| 1984 | The Last Bastion | Yes | No | No | |
| Bodyline | No | Story | Yes | ||
| 1987 | The Far Country | Yes | No | No |
Producer
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | The Cowra Breakout | TV miniseries |
| 1987 | Vietnam | |
| 1988 | The Dirtwater Dynasty | |
| The Clean Machine | TV film | |
| The Riddle of the Stinson | ||
| Fragments of War: The Story of Damien Parer | ||
| Sportz Crazy | Documentary miniseries | |
| 1989 | Bangkok Hilton | TV miniseries |
| Year | Title | Artist |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | "We Don't Need Another Hero" | Tina Turner |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Death Stranding 2: On the Beach | Tarman | Likeness only |
| Year | Title | Academy Awards | BAFTA Awards | Golden Globe Awards | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nominations | Wins | Nominations | Wins | Nominations | Wins | ||
| 1985 | Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome | 1 | |||||
| 1987 | The Witches of Eastwick | 2 | 1 | 1 | |||
| 1992 | Lorenzo's Oil | 2 | 1 | ||||
| 1998 | Babe: Pig in the City | 1 | 1 | ||||
| 2006 | Happy Feet | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2015 | Mad Max: Fury Road | 10 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 2 | |
| Total | 16 | 7 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 1 | |
There are no dates yet, but director George Miller is ready to head out to "The Wasteland" to revisit the 2015 blockbuster hit.
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