Yahoo Lifestyle 
Aussie reality TV winner makes surprising cameo in Furiosa: 'So awesome'
Fans said they 'instantly recognised' the familiar face on the big screen.
Reality TV fans spotted a familiar face in the Australian post-apocalyptic action film, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, which hit cinemas over the weekend. Former SAS commander and 2022 Australian Survivor champion Mark Wales has a small role in the film playing ‘Brake Man’ alongside Hollywood stars Chris Hemsworth and Anya Taylor-Joy.
The 44-year-old father-of-one, who met his partner Samantha Gash while competing on their first season of Australian Survivor in 2017, announced his role on social media earlier this month and shared that he first auditioned two and a half years ago right before he returned to Survivor.
“I’m not a trained actor but I’ve loved film and TV my whole life so I gave it a go,” he detailed. “I never expected I would actually get a callback, but I was asked to do a Zoom call with Director George Miller. For an hour he told stories about his time as an emergency doctor in the 1970s and how he had dreamt of a dystopian wasteland. He told me FURIOSA’s epic backstory.”
Mark went on to admit that he “squealed” when he was offered a role and the entire experience was a “childhood dream come true”.
Speaking with Yahoo Lifestyle about the role, Mark says he feels “really proud” to be a part of the blockbuster.
“I was really nervous about it, but I think I held my own,” he remarks. “It was great to be in such an amazing Australian franchise and as difficult as it was to train and get ready for it, that film is now carved in time and I'm really proud of it. It’s something I'm really, really grateful for.”
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While the career pivot is definitely unexpected, fans have praised his performance on social media and said they were “thrilled” to see him on the big screen.
“Being a Survivor fan I instantly recognised you on screen,” one person commented on his post, while another shared, “That is so awesome. It's always great to see Australian vets get into big productions”.
“You never cease to surprise, Mark!” a third wrote, followed by someone else who said, “Well done mate! Watch out Mr Hemsworth!”.
“Huge congratulations and how awesome to have a go at something totally different. A whole new world is opening up,” a different user replied.
Mark's unique career path
Following his performance in Furiosa, Mark tells Yahoo Lifestyle that he’s “for sure” going to try and continue acting.
“I'm sure there are films out there that need that a beefy physical labourer in their film somewhere or a soldier, so I'm sure I'll be able to put my hand up and get involved,” he says.
Outside of his burgeoning film career, Mark is set to release his debut fiction novel ‘OUTRIDER’ on June 25.
“‘OUTRIDER’ is a novel about the unyielding bond between a father and son as they try to escape the horrors of war in a near-future Australia,” he shared on Instagram. “I can’t wait to see what you all think of my dystopian scenario.”
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The novel comes three years after the release of his memoir, ‘Survivor: Life in the SAS’, which was endorsed by survival expert and adventurer Bear Grylls.
The former reality star also works as a motivational speaker and in April was selected as the Liberal Party candidate for the federal seat of Tangney.
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