Charlize Theron ‘felt so threatened’ by Tom Hardy making Mad Max she required on-set protection

Further details of the animosity between Charlize Theron and Tom Hardy have been detailed in a new book about the making of George Miller's 2015 action blockbuster Mad Max: Fury Road.

The co-stars were known to have a frosty relationship through the lengthy shoot in the Namibian desert, but Kyle Buchanan's new book Blood, Sweat & Chrome: The Wild and True Story of Mad Max: Fury Road suggests Theron felt sufficiently threatened to require on-set protection from the "aggressive" Hardy.

Hardy starred as the title character in the film, played by Mel Gibson in the original trilogy. Theron was newcomer Imperator Furiosa, a lieutenant to the villain Immortan Joe (Hugh Keays-Byrne) who turns against her leader to collaborate with Max while escorting young women to safety.

Speaking to Buchanan, Theron and other crew members allege a litany of unprofessional behaviour on the part of Hardy, including persistent lateness causing his co-workers to wait for hours on set.

In one instance, Hardy was due on set at 8am, along with the rest of the cast and crew required that day. They included Theron, then a new mother whose baby was in childcare nearby while she worked.

Despite producers having made a "special request" for Hardy to be punctual, he was more than three hours late, during which time Theron remained in position, ready to shoot. "She was really going to make a point," recalled camera operator Mark Goellnicht. "She didn't go to the bathroom, didn't do anything. She just sat in the War Rig."

When Hardy finally arrived, Theron asked Hardy: "How disrespectful are you?" and said the producers should "fine the fucking cunt a hundred thousand dollars for every minute that he's held up this crew".