The Mad Max franchise nearly had a brilliant villain twist 44 years ago, and its next movie needs to finally do it properly. The next Mad Max movie, Mad Max: The Wasteland, had a very bumpy development. Tom Hardy, who played Max Rockatansky in Mad Max: Fury Road, has given both discouraging and hopeful quotes about the film at different times, despite the fact that Hardy may be recast for The Wasteland. The franchise has also had some trouble due to Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga‘s low box office earnings, so it’s not clear if the series will continue at all.

If The Wasteland ever does get off the ground, though, it already has a perfect plot twist that’s been waiting for over four decades to be used. There have been plenty of great villains in Mad Max over the years, and it’s almost hard to imagine them getting any better. Lord Humungus (Kjell Nilsson), the main antagonist of Mad Max 2: The Road Warrior, however, almost had the best twist in the entire franchise. Though it wasn’t used in The Road Warrior, The Wasteland could and should still bring back Humungus’ mᴀssive surprise reveal over 40 years later.

The Road Warrior’s Villain, Humungus, Was Originally Supposed To Be Mad Max’s Old Partner

Jim Goose Was Supposed To Survive Mad Max & Hide His Burns With A Hockey Mask

In the early drafts of The Road Warrior, Lord Humungus was supposed to have a secret idenтιтy. Lord Humungus’ scrapped backstory would have revealed that he was actually Jim Goose (Steve Bisley), Max’s partner on the MFP in the original Mad Max. In the first Mad Max, Goose was burned alive by Toecutter (Hugh Keays-Byrne) and Johnny the Boy (Tim Burns). Max saw Goose in the hospital, charred to a crisp but alive, and The Road Warrior would have had him leave the hospital and start a gang of former MFP members.

Lord Humungus proving to be Jim Goose would have been great in so many ways. Currently, the original Mad Max and The Road Warrior feel like very disconnected movies. Everything from the state of the world to Max’s mental state is different, but bringing Goose back would have connected the films much more explicitly. It also would have added so much emotion and tension to Max’s final battle with Humungus, as he would have gone from a faceless war-chief to a tragic and broken former friend. It’s a shame the twist was never used, but it still could be in the future.

Mad Max’s Next Movie Villain Should Bring Back The Road Warrior’s Cut Goose Twist

Making Goose A Villain Would Be A Great Twist & A Perfect Callback For Mad Max: The Wasteland

The twist reveal of Goose being Lord Humungus is quite simply too good to remain a fun fact. It’s the perfect way to examine the regrets Max had for abandoning his old life in favor of becoming a wandering road warrior and to give the entire franchise more consistency. Mad Max: The Wasteland would benefit tremendously from using The Road Warrior‘s scrapped plan for Goose. He would obviously have to be a different villain, as Humungus is definitely ᴅᴇᴀᴅ, but it wouldn’t be hard to create a new villain with an obscured face to preserve the secrecy of his idenтιтy.

The Problem With Goose Returning In The Road Warrior Doesn’t Apply Now

Humungus’ Backstory Was Cut Due To Mad Max’s Relative Obscurity, But Most People Know Who Goose Is Now

Despite how perfectly it would have worked, The Road Warrior didn’t actually reveal that Lord Humungus was Goose. A few remnants of the idea remained, such as the fact that Humungus’ gang has so much MFP equipment, but the final cut of the movie didn’t have any references to Goose. George Miller ultimately decided to remove Lord Humungus’ surprise backstory because he wasn’t confident enough people had seen the original Mad Max to recognize Goose and understand the twist. The original Mad Max was an unexpected hit, but it only earned $8 million worldwide, and it was still a relatively little-known film in 1982.

While George Miller likely made the right call by cutting Goose out of The Road Warrior, the issue of fans recognizing him won’t apply anymore. Mad Max is one of the biggest and most iconic action franchises in film history now. The original Mad Max is now a classic: millions of people have seen it themselves, and millions more at least have a pᴀssing knowledge of what happened in it and who Goose is. If Mad Max: The Wasteland wants to include Jim Goose as a twist villain, most viewers would at least somewhat recognize him and understand the gravity of such a twist.

There’s likely never been a better time to make Goose a villain in a Mad Max movie. After Mel Gibson was recast with Tom Hardy in Mad Max: Fury Road and Anya Taylor-Joy replaced Charlize Theron in Furiosa, fans of the franchise are more than comfortable with new actors stepping into the shoes of old characters. Furiosa also showed that George Miller is interested in diving into the backstories of his characters, which could mean he’d be willing to do the same with Max. With any luck, the next Mad Max film will be his chance to do so.