Mad Max sequel runs off the road again as production delayed for second time

THE anticipated fourth Mad Max film, Fury Road, has run off the road again, leaving hundreds of Australian workers in the dust.

George Miller's film has been delayed for a second time and will not begin filming until 2012, The Australian reported.

The delay has left many major film crew members without work amid fears the high Australian dollar could ultimately kill the film as its budget grows.

Key crew were told this week not to expect to return for pre-production until August or November next year. Production is now anticipated to begin in the Broken Hill region in February 2012.
The film had already been delayed. In July, Kennedy Miller Productions said unseasonal rains had made the Broken Hill area too fertile and production was put back to later this year

The latest postponement comes at a tense time for the film industry as Australia is dragged into a New Zealand labour dispute concerning Peter Jackson's The Hobbit.

Jackson accused Australia of being a jealous "bully boy" after the actor's union, the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance, recommended a boycott of the production.

Executives told The Weekend Australian the NZ imbroglio reflected poorly on the film industry at a time when the key Melbourne, Sydney and Gold Coast film studios were empty and the rising dollar scuppered hopes of other international productions.