Mad Max is an Australian post-apocalyptic action film series and media franchise created by George Miller and Byron Kennedy. It started in 1979 with the film Mad Max, followed by three sequels: Mad Max 2 (1981, known in the United States as The Road Warrior), Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985), and Mad Max: Fury Road (2015). George Miller directed or co-directed all four films. Mel Gibson played the lead role in the first three films, while Tom Hardy took on the role of Max in the fourth film.