Rebel Moon will be an action-packed space opera about a young woman trying to change the fate of her planet, while avoiding the cruel Imperium that placed it in an unfortunate situation in the first place. While it was already known how the pitch for the story came from Zack Snyder's idea for a Star Wars movie, the filmmaker has explained how Rebel Moon's R-rating allows the properties to be different. During a recent interview with Collider's Editor-in-Chief, Steve Weintraub at CCXP, the director talked about how the inclusion of graphic violence and explicit content sets the tone for his latest project, saying:

"Yes, it's influenced sort of iconographically in some ways. We have space fascists, they have space fascists, but I was kind of into that relationship because I like the comment. I think that's one thing that you'll see in the director's cut that is different from the PG-13 version is the irony of a super hard R-rated sci-fi movie at this scale is cleaner in the R-rated version. In the PG-13, we push. It's a hard PG-13. We push them to the ragged edge."

Snyder added to his comments: "The sort of sex and violence aspect of it, being able to understand that, like, for instance, when they go into the bar, it's a brothel, right? It's like a real brothel, and the dog-faced man wants to fuck them. That's what he wants. And so that wouldn't happen in a Star Wars movie, you know? But I like the idea that I saw Star Wars when I was 11 years old. I've grown up now. The implications of what could be happening in that bar, that cantina, are now a reality to me. These are things that could have been going on, and would have been, if looked at from the perspective of a grown-up."

Is 'Rebel Moon's R-Rated Version an Extended Cut?

When asked about the film's runtime—which doesn't have as many limitations as films released in cinemas, due to it streaming on Netflix—Synder discussed how he decided Rebel Moon's length and the sequel's runtime, explaining:

"[I] had really wanted to keep the movie close to two hours. That was like a thing I really wanted to do. I just felt like these two movies together, if they're both about two hours each, and I think movie two is even shorter, it's like an hour and 54 minutes — it's like, I think, one of the first movies I've made that’s under two hours, which is incredible — that was the sort of thing I had in my mind was that I really wanted to keep it close to two hours. So Dody [Dorn] and I, he's an amazing editor, it was really the exercise of like, “Okay, what's the leanest line through the movie?” And that was the game we played with ourselves – only good shots, the best, cleanest line. That was the way that we went about finding what stuck. What stayed in the juggernaut of the movie is what we were looking for, and that was really how we did it."

Snyder went on to discuss how the R-rated version of Rebel Moon is actually what he initially wrote for the movie, saying, "The R-rated version of the movie is really simply what I wrote. It's really what the script was, or part of it." When asked to clarify if the R-rated version is an extended cut, he clarified, "It's a bit of that but…there's a lot more Jimmy, like him wandering around. It’s a lot of that stuff."

'Rebel Moon: Part 2' Is Coming Very Soon

Rebel Moon will follow Kora (Sofia Boutella), a young woman who used to work for the Imperium before leading the charge against them. The fact that she used to work for the organization that enforced oppression on her people will be one of the central themes of the story, alongside the warrior recruiting more people for her cause. Her story will be mirrored by General Titus (Djimon Hounsou), who also used to work for the Imperium before being a valuable member of the team of rebels attempting to take it down. Together, they'll try to free the moon of Veldt before it's too late.

The first part of Rebel Moon, also titled A Child of Fire, will introduce audiences to Kora and her mission to fight against the Imperium. But after her war against the cruel government begins, her journey will continue in Rebel Moon: Part 2 - The Scargiver, which is currently scheduled to premiere on Netflix on April 19, 2024. Even if he didn't get to work on Star Wars, Zack Snyder has built a saga on his own, with the journey set to begin a few weeks from now.

Rebel Moon: Part One - A Child of Fire will premiere on Netflix on December 22.

Rebel Moon

When a peaceful settlement on the edge of a distant moon finds itself threatened by the armies of a tyrannical ruling force, a mysterious stranger living among its villagers becomes their best hope for survival.

Release Date

December 22, 2023

Director

Zack Snyder

Cast

Sofia Boutella , Charlie Hunnam , Anthony Hopkins , Cary Elwes , Jena Malone , Djimon Hounsou

Main Genre

Adventure

Genres

Sci-Fi , Adventure , Action , Drama

Studio

Netflix