Whether you love or hate him, no one can deny that Zack Snyder always goes big. His director’s cut of Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice ran three hours, while his complete vision of Justice League clocked in at four. Both movies had huge, sprawling stories and big personalities and were teeming with grim visuals and special effects. Snyder is an ambitious filmmaker with a brevity problem, but overall, he makes an entertaining movie.
Snyder’s follow-up to the sprawling opus of Justice League and his zombie romp Army of the Dead is Rebel Moon. The film is described in short as an “epic space opera,” not dissimilar to the label of a certain galaxy far, far away. A Netflix production, Rebel Moon boasts an impressive ensemble cast of notable actors and actresses. It is now shaping up to be one of the biggest movies of the holiday season.
While audiences might be tempted to go see Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, Wonka, The Color Purple, Ferrari, or Migration in theaters, Rebel Moon will be the offering for audiences at home during the holidays. Here is everything we know about the upcoming sci-fi film that has the potential to be an epic franchise.
Update September 22, 2023: This article has been updated with more information regarding Rebel Moon following the trailer's release.
Rebel Moon: The Plot
The story behind Rebel Moon is a familiar sci-fi/action backdrop. The official synopsis:
"A peaceful colony on the edge of the galaxy is threatened by the armies of a tyrannical regent named Balisarius. The desperate civilians dispatch a young woman who has a mysterious past to seek out warriors from nearby planets to help them challenge the regent."
Digging deeper into the story, our protagonist colony consists mostly of farmers just going about their lives. But then, a tyrannical and corrupt government known as Mother World swoops through their atmosphere lands and demands the farmers donate their crops to their forces. Sound familiar? How about the fact that their army is called The Imperium? Of course, the story is not completely derivative of a galaxy far, far away. The main character is going to gather a crew of warriors and mercenaries to fight back against Mother World.
The storyline is the brainchild of Snyder himself. He and writing partner Kurt Johnstad fleshed out the script along with writer Shay Hatten. On Philadelphia’s The Preston and Steve Show, Snyder described the action as follows:
“I’m just really excited about doing some sci-fi battle, 'Endor' action sequences. I’ve never really done that, so it was really fun to sort of dive into that with both feet. Also it’s really fun to imagine these worlds, and kind of build out this brand-new mythology - brand-new and fresh cultures and planets and everything.”
Rebel Moon is based on an idea Snyder had for a Star Wars film, one that would be heavily inspired by the film Seven Samurai. Snyder pitched the idea to Lucasfilm shortly after Disney purchased the company. It was intended to be a more mature take on the Star Wars franchise. This is fitting as Star Wars itself was conceived by George Lucas when he could not get the rights to Flash Gordon. Like George Lucas said regarding the prequels, "It's like poetry; it rhymes".
Rebel Moon: The Cast
Zack Snyder drew in an impressive cast for Rebel Moon, replete with some big names. Sofia Boutella will be playing the lead role of Kora. Boutella actually has experience starring in intergalactic adventures when she portrayed Jaylah in Star Trek: Beyond. Since then, Boutella has built up an impressive filmography, starring in films like The Mummy, Hotel Artemis, and Fahrenheit 451. However, she actually got her first role in a major film as the blade-legged assassin Gazelle in Kingsmen: The Secret Service.
The cast is rounded by Ray Fisher, who's reuniting with Zach Snyder from Zack Synder's Justice League as Darrian Bloodaxe, a warrior recruited by Kora. Djimon Hounsou, who's also familiar with intergalactic and fantasy roles from starring in Guardians of the Galaxy and Shazam!, will play General Titus. Ed Skrein, playing another antagonist role similar to his appearances in Deadpool and Alita: Battle Angel, will play Admiral Atticus Noble, the righthand man of the tyrannical ruler of the Imperium. In case that wasn't enough, one Anthony Hopkins is lending his voice as sentient war robot JC1435.
Other notable cast members include Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy), Jena Malone (Donnie Darko), Starz Nair (Supergirl), and Doona Bae (The Host), who round out the cast of colorful warriors recruited by Kora. Snyder has gathered an ensemble to be reckoned with in his effort to bring his vision to life. If nothing else, Snyder is great at picking the right actors and actresses for his roles. He nailed his titular team in Justice League, so between this knack for casting and the names themselves, Rebel Moon has promise.
Everything Else We Know
Snyder is not only the director and co-writer of Rebel Moon, but he is also acting as the cinematographer. Filming lasted 152 days, beginning on April 19, 2022 and concluding on December 2, 2023. The massive shoot was because Snyder filmed two movies worth of material back to back.
Snyder is reuniting with composer Junkie XL, who is set to compose the score for Rebel Moon. Junkie XL notably did the score for Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, Zack Snyder's Justice League, and Army of the Dead.
Release Date
Rebel Moon is set to premiere on Netflix on December 22, 2023. Snyder has confirmed that the film will also have an extended R-rated cut alongside the original cut. Rebel Moon is also the first film; the movie was so massive it was split into two parts, similar to Snyder's plans for Justice League. The film will have the subtitle, Part One: A Child of Fire.
Rebel Moon: Part Two – The Scargiver will premiere on Netflix on April 19, 2024. In addition, Snyder revealed he plans to develop a TV series focusing on Balisarius, the main villain of the film, who will be played by Fra Fee, who is best known for playing Kazi in Hawkeye. It appears Netflix is planning an entire multimedia franchise based around Rebel Moon.