The following contains major spoilers for Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Summary
Praetorian Jack, played by Tom Burke, does his best to protect the titular character inFuriosa, begging the question of whether he survives. In the harsh wastelands of theMad Maxfranchise, allies are hard to come by, and friends even less likely. Yet, in her daring journey to find her way home,Furiosa (Anya Taylor-Joy) earns the respect of the proven road warrior Praetorian Jack, who helps turn her raw skills into refined warfare talent and becomes her companion and lover throughout George Miller’s epic.
InMad Maxchronology,Furiosais a prequel film to 2015’sFury Road, which has been hailed as one of the greatest action movies ever. However, with any prequel comes the question of the whereabouts of certain characters in the later movie. With a villain like Dementus (Chris Hemsworth), one can expect that Furiosa would dispose of him by the movie’s end in some capacity; hence him not being a character inFury Road. Praetorian Jack is an established warrior in the Citadel culture that’s prevalent in the 2015 movie, suggesting he likely wouldn’t survive either.
Praetorian Jack Dies Being Tortured By Dementus' Biker Horde
After The Action Sequence In Bullet Farm, Praetorian Jack Is Captured And Killed
The Bullet Farm action sequence inFuriosalives up to the standards set in George Miller’sMad Max: Fury Road, as Dementus and his horde ambush the War Rig. Furiosa and Jack do their best to survive, nearly eliminating Dementus and taking out several of his men. In an attempt to escape, he pursues them with his larger monster truck, eventually capturing the pair. At this time,Dementus tortures Praetorian Jack, killing him. Furiosa is able to escape and claim revenge later on, but Jack is left out of the rest of the movie.
TheFuriosaendingis as violent and action-packed as one would hope for from an installment to theMad Maxfranchise, though Praetorian Jack is the rare well-meaning character in the saga that no one wants to see perish. Plenty of characters in George Miller’s world have survived terrible things and pressed on, so it wouldn’t be a stretch of the imagination to assume Jack would appear sometime in the future. However, as of now,this seems to be the one and only appearance of the likable road warrior.
Tom Burke Confirmed Praetorian Jack’s Death In Furiosa
Tom Burke Confirmed His Character’s Death With George Miller
Audiences aren’t the only ones wondering whether future films will see more Praetorian Jack. Having had the same curiosity about Jack’s fate, actor Tom Burke shared some insight on the matter. Knowing that characters had previously survived such situations in theMad Maxuniverse,Burke revealed that he went to director George Miller to question the finality of the event. In an interview withGQ, he states:
I actually read the words, “He’s dead and she sees his dead lifeless corpse.” And eventually, it was about a week, I said, “George, I’m dead, aren’t I?” He’s like, “Oh yeah, yeah, yeah.” Because I thought, You never know, I could come back. He might not have any face left, but a lot of people in the Wasteland are like that.
There aremultipleMad Maxmovies in development, though their future may be up in the air givenFuriosa’sbox office struggles. Given the current plans, however, the films George Miller has discussed include a prequel toFury Road, which would occur one year beforehand, and a sequel to the 2015 movie titledMad Max: The Wasteland. Chronologically, neither of these films would line up with an opportunity to see Jack return, thoughthere could always be comics or video games exploring his life beforeFuriosa.
The Importance Of Furiosa’s Seed & Its Multiple Meanings Explained
The importance of Furiosa’s peach seed changes in the film, and it relates to Mad Max: Fury Road. Its multiple meanings need further explanation.
How Praetorian Jack Dying Impacts Furiosa
Praetorian Jack’s Life & Death Are Vital To Furiosa’s Character Growth
At first glance, Praetorian Jack’s purpose inFuriosamay seem like more of a plot utility for her training as a warrior and for her survival in the harsh Citadel, but there’s much more to it. Strictly speaking aboutFuriosa, the titular character wanders through the world in an effort to get home, fully believing that she has to be entirely self-sufficient to do so. In such an environment,receiving genuine help from a kind, caring person has massive implicationsand could be seen as a significant reason for choosing hope over revenge in the end.
To see what happens next on Furiosa’s journey,Mad Max: Fury Roadis streaming on Max.
In terms of Furiosa as a character inMad Max: Fury Road, there’s an added element to her relationship with Max now. While the pair are initially reluctant to trust one another, it’s possible that her eventual warming to him could be due to the similarities between him and Jack. It’s absolutely vital for Furiosa to maintain hope in humanity, andthough Jack’s death may haunt her, his life of honor and nobility serves as a far more impactful messageto her inFuriosa.
Sources:GQ
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
A prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road, Furiosa is an action-adventure film that tells the origin story of the headstrong and fearless Furiosa. Set shortly after the beginning of the “end of the world,” Furiosa is kidnapped and brought before a powerful warlord, now forced to work for him. To find her way back home, Furiosa will adapt to the new harsh and arid world as she grows into the Furiosa she becomes known to be.
