Best known as the creative mind behind Mad Max, George Miller is one of Australia’s most prominent filmmakers. The director, screenwriter and producer has worked in the industry since the 1970s, and has an impressive body of work both within Australia and internationally. This article shares information about Miller’s career, the top 10 best George Miller movies, and where to watch them.
George Miller founded his production company Kennedy Miller, with his friend Byron Kennedy in 1978. It is one of Australia’s oldest running production companies. Their first film together was Mad Max, and two years later they released Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior. Doug Mitchell joined the company in 1981 and has been Miller’s producing partner since.
In 1983, Kennedy was killed in a helicopter crash, but Miller continued to work on film and television projects including Bodyline (1984), The Dirtwater Dynasty (1988) and Bangkok Hilton (1989) starring Nicole Kidman, Denholm Elliot and Hugo Weaving. They also released the feature film Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome in 1985.
Miller then set his sights further afield, expanding into the international market. Miller directed The Witches of Eastwick starring Jack Nicholson, Cher, Susan Sarandon and Michelle Pfeiffer in 1987. He followed up with the Oscar nominated drama film Lorenzo's Oil in 1992, which stars American actors Nick Nolte and Susan Sarandon.
In 1995 Kennedy Miller followed this with the commercial success Babe, about a pig who believes he is a sheepdog, based on Dick King-Smith’s novel. Chris Noonan directed the film, which Miller produced. Miller then directed, co-wrote and produced the sequel Babe: Pig In The City. Around this time, George Miller also released a documentary called 4,000 Years of Dreaming, which was a collaboration between Kennedy Miller and the British Film Institute’s ‘Century of Cinema’ series.
Happy Feet marked massive success for George Miller. The 2006 animated musical comedy film about penguins in Antarctica won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. Happy Feet features a prestigious cast including the voices of Elijah Wood, Robin Williams and Brittany Murphy, in addition to Australian stars Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman, Hugo Weaving, Anthony LaPaglia, Magda Szubanski and Steve Irwin.
In 2009, Miller changed the name of the production company to Kennedy Miller Mitchell to reflect Mitchell’s significant contributions to their success.
After 25 years of development, Kennedy Miller Mitchell finally released the next film in the Mad Max series: Mad Max: Fury Road. Starring Tom Hardy as the new Max Rockatansky (replacing Mel Gibson) and Charlize Theron as Imperator Furiosa, the film was praised by critics but failed to break even at the box office.
Since Fury Road, Miller has directed Three Thousand Years of Longing with Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba, and Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga which premiered at Cannes Film Festival on 15 May 2024 to a six minute ovation. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga stars Anya Taylor-Joy as the titular Imperator Furiosa, with Chris Hemsworth as warlord leader Dementus.
Where can I watch George Miller’s best movies?
George Miller’s impressive career has cemented his status as one of Australia’s most prolific filmmakers. Here are the top 10 George Miller movies with all the details on where to watch the films.
