Rebel Moon trailer debuts: New Zack Snyder movie looks like Star Wars meets Dune

The first trailer for Zack Snyder’s new movie Rebel Moon is now live, and the big-budget sci-fi movie looks like a cross between Star Wars and Dune.

Zack Snyder was in London today to promote his new Netflix flick Rebel Moon, which drops on the streaming service in December. Followed by a sequel in April.

Together with his producing partner Deborah Snyder, Zack introduced clips from the movie, and discussed character arcs, which we can’t talk about yet. We also learned that Part 1 is called A Child of Fire, and Part 2 is titled The Scargiver.

Snyder then played the trailer for Rebel Moon, which is now online, and can be viewed below…

Rebel Moon trailer debuts, looks like Star Wars meets Dune

Rebel Moon started out as a pitch for a Star Wars movie, but when the Snyders couldn’t make that work with Lucasfilm, they went off and made Batman v Superman.

Zack held onto the idea however, and following his collaboration with Netflix on Army of the Dead, re-teamed with the streaming service to make it into an original, standalone movie. That will be followed by a sequel soon after.

Judging from the first trailer, Rebel Moon looks and feels like a Star Wars movie. While the visual style and washed out colors are also reminiscent of Denis Villeneuve’s Dune double.

What happens in the trailer?

The Rebel Moon trailer begins with the story of the Princess Issa, as told by a robot called Jimmy, who is voiced by Anthony Hopkins. “In myth she was called the redeemer,” explains Jimmy. “It was said this child would stop the madness of war. That she was to usher in a new age of peace and compassion. I was given memories of a world I will never see. Loyalty to a king I cannot serve. And love for a child I could not save.”

We see the heroes of Rebel Moon, who look like a combination farmers and soldiers. And the villains, who do their villainy in uniforms similar to those worn by the Nazis. Another throwback to Star Wars.

Characters talk about love being weakness, the difference between justice and revenge, and the price to pay for defiance. While there are also shots of huge creatures, including a brief glimpse of a woman-spider.

Over battle scenes, we hear Djimon Hounsou’s General Titus cry out: “The time has come, for all that you love – protect each other, and show them no mercy.”

While over scenes of Sofia Boutella’s character Kora in action, Jimmy claims: “A king is a man, and a man can fail. But a myth is indestructible.” While the trailer ends with the robot asking “Who among you is willing to die for what you believe?”

What is Zack Snyder’s new movie about?

Here’s the official synopsis for Rebel Moon: “When a peaceful colony on the edge of a galaxy finds itself threatened by the armies of a tyrannical ruling force, Kora, a mysterious stranger living among the villagers, becomes their best hope for survival. Tasked with finding trained fighters who will unite with her in making an impossible stand against the Mother World, Kora assembles a small band of warriors — outsiders, insurgents, peasants and orphans of war from different worlds who share a common need for redemption and revenge. As the shadow of an entire Realm bears down on the unlikeliest of moons, a battle over the fate of a galaxy is waged, and in the process, a new army of heroes is formed.”

Sofia Boutella plays Kora, while the rest of the star-studded cast includes Ed Skrein, Charlie Hunnam, Djimon Hounsou, Cary Elwes, Corey Stoll, Michiel Huisman, Ray Fisher, Cleopatra Coleman, E. Duffy, Staz Nair, Jenna Malone, Doona Bae, and the voice of Anthony Hopkins.

Rebel Moon: A Child of Fire streams on Netflix from December 22, 2023, while Rebel Moon: The Scargiver hits on April 19, 2024. For more on the movie, head here.