Mad Max: Fury Road has defied the odds that were so heavily stacked against a director returning, after a decades-long absence, to a franchise he created. George Miller took us all by surprise, and succeeded where other high-profile filmmakers (*cough* George Lucas and Steven Spielberg *cough*) have failed; with his epic emerging as not only the finest action extravaganza so far this year, but one of the very best English-language actioners since the 1980s. True to its name, however, the road to this fourth Mad Max film was far from smooth, and required the blood, sweat, and tears of countless crew members, going back to the concept artists Miller first utilized to illustrate his post-apocalyptic vision. One such artist, Peter Pound, is now sharing his work online, and, in so doing, offering a fascinating glimpse at the film we might have seen, and the one that’s probably playing right now in a theater near you in an alternate universe.

You can check out Pound’s depictions of Furiosa, Max, and Immortan Joe in the gallery below. Together, they present an alternate version version of Mad Max: Fury Road that’s even more heavily influenced than the one we know by the great dystopian comic-book art found in such titles as 2000 A.D. (Fittingly, Pound’s art is dated 2000.)

Pound has contributed concept and storyboard illustrations to such films as Dark City, Man-Thing, The Crow, and Miller’s two Babe movies. To see more of his work for Mad Max: Fury Road, as well as other productions, be sure to visit www.peterpound.com.au.

What do you think of Pound’s Fury Road art? Let us know below!

HT: Film Sketchr