After the success of Army of the Dead and its multiple spinoffs in development, Zack Snyder is teaming up with Netflix once again to produce and direct his next project: Rebel Moon, an epic sci-fi adventure with a Star Wars scope and scale. In fact, this used to be a Star Wars movie once upon a time when Snyder pitched a version of it to LucasFilm. Here’s an ongoing look at what we can expect from Rebel Moon.
Zack Snyder will direct and co-write the film and will reunite with many of his colleagues from past projects. The script for Rebel Moon will be co-written by Shay Hatten, who co-wrote Army of the Dead and Kurt Johnstad who worked on 300 with Snyder.
The Stone Quarry is the main production company behind the movie with Grand Electric also listed which is Eric Newman’s production company which has an overall deal with Netflix.
Snyder commented on the inspiration for Rebel Moon in his THR interview:
“This is me growing up as an Akira Kurosawa fan, a Star Wars fan. It’s my love of sci-fi and a giant adventure.”
@Netflix Let’s go! https://t.co/kLeZ9jMLxi
— Zack Snyder (@ZackSnyder) July 6, 2021
Snyder will produce Rebel Moon with wife and producing partner Deborah Snyder via the duo’s Stone Quarry along with longtime principal Wesley Coller. Eric Newman, who produced Snyder’s 2004 feature debut, Dawn of the Dead is producing via his banner, Grand Electric.
Here’s everything else we know about Zack Snyder’s and Netflix’s Rebel Moon:
What’s the plot of Rebel Moon?
The story synopsis for Netflix’s Rebel Moon has been revealed by The Hollywood Reporter. As revealed, the movie is heavily inspired by Star Wars and used to be a Star Wars pitch a decade ago.
The story is set in motion when a peaceful colony on the edge of the galaxy is threatened by the armies of a tyrannical regent named Balisarius. Desperate, the colonists dispatch a young woman with a mysterious past to seek out warriors from neighboring planets to help them make a stand.
Additional plot information for the movie was released in November 2021:
“The film is set in a peaceful colony on the edge of the galaxy that finds itself threatened by the armies of the tyrannical Regent Balisarius. They dispatch a young woman with a mysterious past to seek out warriors from neighboring planets to help them take a stand the Tyrant.”
To give you an idea of what to expect, Zack Snyder shared some concept art on his Vero account in 2021.
Rebel Moon concept art
Who is cast in Rebel Moon?
We’re still waiting for the full cast but in October 2021, Sofia Boutella was the first cast announcement for Rebel Moon.
Sofia Boutella – Picture: Getty Images
Boutella is most known for Kingsman: The Secret Service as well as having starred in Star Trek Beyond and Atomic Blonde. She’ll be playing the role of Kora described as athletic and having good martial arts skills.
Three other characters we know are being cast include:
Noble – Charasmatic and imposing, commanding and brutal to the point of being sadistic
Gunnar – Handsome and physically fit. Serious, earnest and dependable.
Balisarius – A ferocious cunning warrior.
What’s the production status of Rebel Moon?
As of January 2022, Part I of Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon is expected to enter production on April 18 and wrap on November 4, 2022.
“I’ve been working on this on the side for so long, it’s pretty far along,”
In November 2021, we got word via ProductionWeekly that filming will span from March 1, 2022, until August 31, 2022. However, a recent update from ProductionWeekly has revealed that the filming dates have been pushed forward by over a month, and are now scheduled to begin on April 18th, 2022, and will come to an end by November 4th, 2022.
Production will take place in Inyo County which is in California in the United States. The popular tourist destination has been a popular filming destination with over 400 Hollywood films reportedly filmed here over the years and boasts that it’s the “largest Western backlot located in Lone Pine, CA”.
Going back to Star Wars, Death Valley National Park, which is in Inyo California, was the filming location used for Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope and The Return of the Jedi.
Inyo, California
What’s the development history of Rebel Moon?
About a decade ago, Rebel Moon was originally a Star Wars pitch developed by Zack Snyder. It would be a more mature take on the universe created by George Lucas and didn’t move beyond meaningful conversations after The Walt Disney Co. acquired Lucasfilm in 2012. Ironically, as we saw years later, a slightly more mature take on the universe would be the very thing to revitalize the franchise in The Mandalorian.
At one point, Snyder and Newman, who was behind Narcos and Narcos Mexico, went down the path of making it into a series, but it was ultimately decided to make Rebel Moon a feature film, on which Snyder was actively working the past few years:
“I’ve spent the last two or three years building out this universe. Every corner has to be painted in. I’ve been doing designs, constantly drawing and really cultivating its fertile ground to make this world fully realized.”
Will Rebel Moon become a cinematic universe too?
As Snyder has already launched multiple Army of the Dead projects for Netflix, the question is, will Rebel Moon be the same? Snyder’s answer to that is “hopefully”.
“My hope is that this also becomes a massive IP and a universe that can be built out.”
According to Production Weekly, the movie is now dubbed as Rebel Moon Part I, meaning more parts are already planned at Netflix.
What’s the Netflix release date for Rebel Moon?
Netflix hasn’t set a date for Rebel Moon yet, but considering the potential scope of the production, we shouldn’t hold our breath as films of this scale tend to take a few years to make. We would expect 2023 at the earliest.
For a look at everything else Zack Snyder and his team are bringing to Netflix, check out our Zack Snyder guide.
Are you looking forward to Rebel Moon on Netflix? Let us know in the comments.