Immortan Joe

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Lore & Background

Immortan Joe's regime is built on his control of the Citadel's fresh water. He wears a clear, plastic carapace over oozing sores, his long white hair flaring around a skeleton-smile mask that hides a breathing apparatus. The cornerstone of his power is the War Boys, young men with cancer and other fatal diseases from the wasteland's radioactivity. Joe invents an automobile-centered religion, promising valiant soldiers a place in Valhalla. He maintains a large collection of pre-apocalyptic vehicles called the "House of Holy Motors," including the heavily armed "War Rig." Joe is slowly dying, and none of his three sons—Rictus Erectus, Scabrous Scrotus, and Corpus Colossus—are ideal successors, so he kidnaps genetically healthy women to breed a healthy heir.

In Their Own Story

In Fury Road, Joe dispatches the War Rig commanded by Imperator Furiosa on a routine supply run, but when he sees she has veered off course, he checks his private vault and realizes his Five Wives have escaped. Enraged, he takes every able-bodied War Boy in the Citadel in pursuit, also commanding Gastown and the Bullet Farm to send armies. During the chase, his favorite wife Angharad climbs outside the War Rig as a human shield, but she trips and falls into the path of Joe's monster truck, killing both her and her unborn fetus—a physically perfect baby. Joe stops his army in the desert, then sees the War Rig has turned around heading back to the Citadel. He overtakes it with his personal vehicle, leading to a final confrontation.

Reader's Guide

Immortan Joe is portrayed by Hugh Keays-Byrne in Fury Road, who previously portrayed the Toecutter in the original Mad Max. In the 2024 prequel Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Joe is portrayed by Lachy Hulme after Keays-Byrne died in 2020. The comic book reveals Joe was originally Colonel Joe Moore, a celebrated soldier in the Australian Army who fought in the water and oil wars. After civilization collapsed, he and his men became a brutal road gang. He captured a massive aquifer that became the Citadel, and his followers acclaimed him as "immortal," adapted into "Immortan." In Furiosa, Joe buys the preteen Furiosa from the warlord Dementus, telling her she may become one of his wives. Years later, after Furiosa helps Joe ambush Dementus, he promotes her to Imperator.

Did You Know?

• Immortan Joe was originally Colonel Joseph 'Joe' Moore, a celebrated soldier in the Australian Army who fought in the water and oil wars that helped bring on a global apocalypse.
• Joe wears a clear plastic carapace over oozing sores and a skeleton-smile mask that hides a breathing apparatus, with medals made from car and mobile phone parts and some actual military insignia like U.S. Navy officer cap insignia.
• In Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Joe buys the preteen Furiosa from the warlord Dementus, telling her she may become one of his wives, and later promotes her to Imperator after she helps him ambush Dementus.
• Joe's policy is to discard his wives after three failed attempts at breeding a healthy heir, as shown in Furiosa.
• In the video game, Joe refused to let his son Scabrous Scrotus inherit the Citadel due to the latter's insanity.

The Architect of the Wasteland

Immortan Joe's power is centered on the Citadel, a rock fortress with one of the only remaining sources of fresh water. He dominates the regional economy through this control. His army of War Boys lives in the Citadel while regular citizens live in squalid tunnels. Joe's mechanics creatively repurpose pre-apocalyptic vehicles into fighting machines. He has allies in charge of Gastown (which produces petrol) and the Bullet Farm (which produces ammunition). In the comic book, Joe's right-hand-man Major Kalashnikov becomes the Bullet Farmer, and the man who revealed the location of the Citadel becomes the People Eater, controlling Gastown. Joe begins to succumb to radiation sickness.

The Tyrant's Fall

Joe's downfall begins when Imperator Furiosa flees with his Five Wives—Toast "the Knowing," Capable, the Dag, Cheedo "the Fragile," and his favorite "the Splendid" Angharad—in the War Rig. Two wives, Angharad and the Dag, are pregnant with potential heirs. Joe mobilizes his entire army and calls on Gastown and the Bullet Farm for help. During the pursuit, Angharad is killed when she falls under Joe's monster truck. Joe stops his army in the desert, then sees the War Rig has turned around heading back to the Citadel, realizing he left it undefended. He overtakes the War Rig with his personal vehicle, leading to the final confrontation where Furiosa kills him.

Hugh Keays-Byrne's Definitive Portrayal

Australian actor Hugh Keays-Byrne portrayed Immortan Joe in Mad Max: Fury Road. He previously portrayed the Toecutter in the original Mad Max. Keays-Byrne died in 2020. For the 2024 prequel Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Immortan Joe was portrayed by Lachy Hulme.

Enduring Legacy and Franchise Expansion

Immortan Joe's influence extends beyond Fury Road. A companion comic book series of the same name explores his origins, showing his rise from Colonel Joe Moore to the Immortan. The 2024 prequel Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga depicts his earlier interactions with the warlord Dementus and his acquisition of a young Furiosa. In the video game, Joe does not directly appear, but his son Scabrous Scrotus leads a band of War Boys; Joe refused to let Scrotus inherit the Citadel due to his insanity. Joe's death in Fury Road opens the way for the collapse of his tyranny.