300: Rise of an Empire has leaped to number two on Netflix’s Top 10 movies chart — but it’s also confused viewers, with some unsure whether or not it’s a prequel, sequel, or if Zack Snyder was involved.
While Snyder made his directorial debut with 2003’s Dawn of the Dead, he showed off what’d become his signature style (particularly with the DCEU movies) three years later with 300, a swords-and-sandals epic based on Frank Miller’s blood-splattered comic book.
It was an extraordinary success, grossing $456 million worldwide and achieving pop-culture permanence; Gerard Butler’s unforgettable delivery of, “This is Sparta!” is still quoted today.
The franchise was resurrected in 2014 with 300: Rise of an Empire, but it’s not a traditional follow-up. If you just jumped in on the vague memory of seeing it in cinemas, or perhaps it was your first time watching it, it’d be fair to be a little lost.
“It took me an hour and 20 minutes into 300: Rise of an Empire to realize that it was in fact not the movie 300,” one user tweeted. “Wait is 300: Rise of an Empire a completely different movie from 300?” another wrote.
Firstly, while written by Snyder, it’s directed by Noam Murro. It’s a prequel and sequel that also includes scenes that take place during the original film, with Lena Headey, Peter Mensah, and Rodrigo Santoro reprising their roles.
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Butler doesn’t return as Leonidas (he appears in archive footage), with the film predominantly following Sullivan Stapleton’s Themistocles as he tries to unite Greece to repel the Persian invasion. This includes slaying King Darius (Yigal Naor), but more importantly, he has to contend with his fiery leader of the armada, Artemisia (Eva Green).
Much like the first film, it’s a fictionalized account of the battles during the Greco-Persian Wars, mostly adapted from Miller’s then-unpublished 300 follow-up, Xerxes.
Interestingly, Snyder is developing a 300 prequel TV series for Warner Bros, so there may be more to come from the Spartans in the next couple of years.
In the meantime, check out our defense of Snyder’s worst movie, what’s happening with the Rebel Moon director’s cuts, and new movies coming to streaming this month.
