Summary

  • Zack Snyder's latest film, Rebel Moon, is set to release on Netflix in December 2023, offering fans a new science fiction franchise.
  • Rebel Moon is an epic-scale story inspired by works of Akira Kurosawa and science fiction epics like Dune and Star Wars.
  • While Rebel Moon takes inspiration from Star Wars, it is its own original story with no connection to George Lucas's world. The film will release with both a PG-13 cut and an R-rated extended version.

Zack Snyder's latest film, Rebel Moon, is set to release on Netflix in December 2023, offering film fans a new science fiction franchise. Following his streak of superhero movies in the 2010s, Snyder became most known for the controversy surrounding his departure from Justice League, and the subsequent changes to the project. An internet movement fought to have the filmmaker's original vision restored in Zack Snyder's Justice League, becoming recognized as one of the largest movements of fan activism ever. In 2023, the director has moved on from DC films and is constructing a very promising Star Wars-inspired ion project, which has his dedicated fan base overwhelmed with excitement.

Rebel Moon is a project that's been in development with Snyder attached since 2012. After a long road to find its way to Netflix, the film finally began shooting in April 2022. This is Snyder's second major project for Netflix, a partnership that seems to have been a perfect fit for both parties. In 2021, Netflix released Snyder's Army of the Dead, another film that seems to have spawned a fictional universe, with a sequel on the way. Now Rebel Moon has released its first trailer, as the film's December 22, 2023, release date rapidly approaches.

Rebel Moon's Synopsis & Story Explained

Ed Skrein as iral Atticus Noble in Rebel Moon

Rebel Moon's story follows Kora, a mysterious young woman who recruits warriors from neighboring planets to rebel against a tyrannical empire known as the Mother World. The film will take place on the moon of Veldt, a peaceful colony under the threat of the Imperium. The moon of Veldt will be just the latest stop for Regent Balisarus, the film's warlord antagonist, on his ruthless conquest of a vast galaxy. The film is set to be epic in scale, with fantastical creatures, lightsaber-like swordplay, battles in space, unique alien beings, and intricate mythologies.

The story is highly inspired by the works of Akira Kurosawa and the Japanese Jidaigeki film genre, most notably Seven Samurai, which follows a similar storyline of a samurai recruiting allies to protect a village from a threatening force. Rebel Moon also takes great inspiration from science fiction epics like Dune and Star Wars, with the addition of the director's own mature tastes and violent, action-packed filmmaking.

Is Rebel Moon A Star Wars Movie?

Nemesis wielding a lightsaber type weapon in Rebel Moon

While Rebel Moon takes great inspiration from Star Wars, Zack Snyder's film is its own original story, with no connection to the world George Lucas created. Snyder's original concept for the film was to be a Star Wars project, but he was turned off, realizing it would've been difficult to get a Star Wars film off the ground with no pre-existing characters and an R rating. Snyder has found far more creative freedom with Netflix, which allowed him to tell his story with his desired style and rating. Rebel Moon will release with both a PG-13 cut and an R-rated extended version.

The most notable Star Wars comparison so far, seen in trailers and promotional images, has been the lightsaber-like swords that certain characters wield. These swords certainly move with different properties than lightsabers, but carry a similar feel of power and elegance. These blades have actually been praised for displaying a level of originality in Rebel Moon that modern Star Wars films have lacked. The sword combat will very likely take heavy inspiration from Japanese samurai films, with Doona Bae's character, Nemesis, being the main wielder.

Why Rebel Moon Is Split Into Two Movies

Kora in a field in Rebel Moon

Rebel Moon will release in two parts, with the first releasing in December 2023, and part two following shortly after on April 19, 2024. While fans of the Snyder Cut may be used to the director's epic-length films, both Rebel Moon parts will actually come in under two hours. The original script for Rebel Moon was set to be 172 pages, which would likely work out to be over three hours long. Netflix's chairperson, Scott Stuber, was worried about the idea, noting that movies under two hours tend to perform better.

Zack Snyder insisted on keeping the length but offered to split it into two films. Snyder has described Rebel Moon as a character-driven story about how people can change and find redemption. Feeling that much of that story would've been lost if the film were to be one, two-hour project, he worked out the idea for two films and two releases. For dedicated Snyder fans, of which there are many, the director has shared that there will be "more explicit, hard-edged cuts" of the film that will release later on. His clear, laid-out plans for the franchise seem to indicate he's avoiding a big Star Wars mistake.