REBEL MOON Producers Were Relieved When Zack Snyder's Original Pitch Fell Through: "F*ck STAR WARS"

REBEL MOON Producers Were Relieved When Zack Snyder's Original Pitch Fell Through: "F*ck STAR WARS"

During a recent interview, Rebel Moon producers touched on Zack Snyder's original plans for the Netflix movies, and it sounds like they weren't exactly devastated when his Star Wars pitch didn't work out.

By MarkCassidy - Aug 29, 2023 06:08 AM EST
Filed Under: Netflix
Source: Via SFF Gazette

It's no secret that Zack Snyder's original pitch for Rebel Moon was a Seven Samurai-inspired Star Wars movie, and the director recently revealed that he actually came very close to developing the project with Lucasfilm shortly after the Disney acquisition.

Realizing that he wasn't going to have the amount of creative freedom he felt he required, Snyder ultimately decided to rework the story as an original concept for Netflix.

During the Rebel Moon press junket (via /Film), producers Deborah Snyder and Eric Newman explained why they were relieved when the Justice League director's initial idea didn't materialize in the Galaxy Far, Far Away.

Once, it was a Star Wars film, and I never wanted it to be,” Deborah Snyder said. “I remember, I said to Zack, ‘I just feel like your hands are going to be tied so much in what that IP is,’ even though it kind of lived outside of it. So I was kind of happy when that fell apart, because I always felt like it was better. We learned so much with all our years working with the superheroes and creating those worlds, and to do something now that’s wholly original."

Newman was a lot more candid.

“I remember [Zack] calling me at some point, and this has got to be 15 years ago, saying, ‘I’m thinking of doing Seven Jedi, in the Star Wars universe.’ And I was like, ‘Oh, that’s a cool idea.’ Then, a few years later, he calls me and goes, ‘You know, I think it could be a television show.’ I’m like, ‘Yes, let’s do this! [frick] ‘Star Wars!’ Let’s do this as a TV show.'”

The TV series never came to be, either, and Rebel Moon will release on Netflix as a two-part movie.

Snyder's Star Wars influences are still very much on display in the first trailer (a character even wields what look a lot like a pair of lightsabers), but his own distinct style also shines through.

From Zack Snyder, the filmmaker behind 300, Man of Steel, and Army of the Dead, comes REBEL MOON, an epic science-fantasy event decades in the making. When a peaceful colony on the edge of a galaxy finds itself threatened by the armies of a tyrannical ruling force, Kora (Sofia Boutella), 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.

The heroes of Rebel Moon are: Kora (Sofia Boutella), an Imperium deserter who leaves the peaceful Veldt to fight back; Kai (Charlie Hunnam), a mercenary pilot whose Tawau-Class freighter will prove invaluable to Kora’s quest; Gunnar (Michiel Huisman), a Veldt farmer who knows little of the galaxy outside of his small, quiet corner of the galaxy; General Titus (Djimon Hounsou), a hardened gladiator who once served the Imperium; Tarak (Staz Nair), a noble indentured servant who shares a bond with a flying creature called a Bennu; Nemesis (Doona Bae), a cyborg sword master whose mechanical hands allow her to wield molten-metal weapons; Darrian Bloodaxe (Ray Fisher), an insurgent who has been harrying the Imperium with guerilla attacks; and Milius (E. Duffy), a refugee who seeks justice for their home — a colony that has already fallen to the Mother World.

Rebel Moon: A Child of Fire hits Netflix on December 22. The sequel, Rebel Moon Part 2: The Scargiver, will debut on April 19, 2024.

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FireandBlood
FireandBlood - 8/29/2023, 6:34 AM
Forever talking shit about better franchises they’re inspired by. These people never learn
AwesomePromoz
AwesomePromoz - 8/29/2023, 10:28 AM
I wouldn't overreact to these comments, it's all just marketing. Comedians say [frick] this and [frick] that all the time. Controversy sells. It's hip.
The1st
The1st - 8/29/2023, 10:52 AM
@PlusUltra - They all steal in some way. John Carter of Mars flopped, for example, due to it being too much like SW, among other things, and yet it was created first. Even the name Ahsoka comes from Indian history.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 8/29/2023, 12:33 PM
@AwesomePromoz - LORD willing, I think that's a calm perspective. I thank God for that.
DrReedRichards
DrReedRichards - 8/29/2023, 6:37 AM




Right on queue...
Gmoney84
Gmoney84 - 8/29/2023, 6:43 AM
“Creating those worlds”. That explains so much.
marvel72
marvel72 - 8/29/2023, 6:50 AM
I agree f*ck current Disney Star Wars most of it sucks.

Original Trilogy
The Mandalorion Season 1 and 2
Rogue One
Andor
Bits of the prequels

Everything else live action I can live without.
FireandBlood
FireandBlood - 8/29/2023, 6:52 AM
@marvel72 - What a contradictory statement. You just named half of Disney Star Wars, which you like
Moriakum
Moriakum - 8/29/2023, 7:04 AM
@marvel72 - And yet, most of your preferences are Disney Star Wars...
cham2119
cham2119 - 8/29/2023, 9:54 AM
@marvel72 - ...most of your list is Disney Star Wars...🧐
dagenspear
dagenspear - 8/29/2023, 12:28 PM
@PlusUltra - The post says "most of it sucks." Not all.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 8/29/2023, 12:32 PM
@cham2119 - And it's less than half of Disney reign. I may disagree with how much Disney has done that doesn't work, but that doesn't mean what they said is a contradiction. As far as live action projects, I think, ST, Kenobi, Boba Fett, Mando season 3 don't really work to me.
FireandBlood
FireandBlood - 8/29/2023, 1:05 PM
@dagenspear - Yet most can’t be half or less than, can it? And he posted half the content
dagenspear
dagenspear - 8/29/2023, 1:16 PM
@PlusUltra - That person posted less than half of Disney Star Wars live action content. Ahsoka, ST, Kenobi, Mando season 3, Boba Fett. And that's not even counting the animated, which I don't know if they're counting.
The1st
The1st - 8/29/2023, 2:23 PM
@marvel72 - They can afford the look, but don't understand largely how to infuse it into some of their properties. I say some because I didn't go into obligatory hater critic mode when watching Ahsoka.
Forthas
Forthas - 8/29/2023, 6:59 AM
I don't care...I am a DUNE-bugger!
Urubrodi
Urubrodi - 8/29/2023, 7:24 AM
Gets turned down by Lucasfilm... "Yeah, frick them!". Is this "mature" reaction supposed to inspire confidence in this new "franchise"?
Origame
Origame - 8/29/2023, 7:32 AM
@Urubrodi - if it were prior to disney I'd agree with you. But current Lucasfilm? Them rejecting this is like a badge of honor.
Urubrodi
Urubrodi - 8/29/2023, 7:40 AM
@Origame - Rogue One, Andor, Mandalorian seasons 1-2, Ahsoka (so far), Tales of the Jedi, Visions, last season of Clone Wars, Star Wars Jedi games... people act like Lucasfilm has only been involved in shit since the Disney take over. But even then Star Wars continues to be and will always will be one of the biggest franchises of all time. Considering Zack Snyder's reputation and that this is a completely new franchise, a bit of respect would be nice, especially considering his original idea was to be part of Star Wars.
Origame
Origame - 8/29/2023, 7:55 AM
@Urubrodi - force awakens, the last jedi, rise of skywalker, mandalorian season 3, obi wan kenobi, ahsoka (have no idea what you're smoking but it's really not good), visions season 2, and any star wars video game not directly tied to fallen order are my counters to this. Disney has produced SOME good content. But not much. Hell, visions required them to completely ignore lore in order to make anything of substance. And some of these just don't make sense, like the final season of clone wars which was already written prior to being greenlit.
FireandBlood
FireandBlood - 8/29/2023, 7:56 AM
@Urubrodi - Not only that, but with the big part he played in quite literally sinking the DC franchise, you’d think he’d have humbled himself, even just a little. But apparently not.
Shivermetimbers
Shivermetimbers - 8/29/2023, 9:22 AM
@Origame - You forgot to mention that horrible Boba Fett show.
Shivermetimbers
Shivermetimbers - 8/29/2023, 9:23 AM
@PlusUltra - To be fair, it wasn't Zach that said F star wars, it was the producer according to this article.
Urubrodi
Urubrodi - 8/29/2023, 10:18 AM
@Origame - There has been only 2 epi so far for Ahsoka but they were good in my opinion (and that of many others as well). Obi-Wan didn't live up to its potential, but it's not all bad. "Some of these don't make sense", when there is only one you could make an argument against, but then again Disney could have chosen to not greenlit the final season. I even forgot to mention The Bad Batch that is a good show. My point still stands though, there is a lot of bad things they did, especially the sequel trilogy, but a lot of good things as well. And probably if the franchise was kept under George Lucas we wouldn't have seen half as much content, as he was fine with just doing animations and didn't have the budget for live-action series, which Disney has. And then again this was not even my main point, the point is that Star Wars is one of the biggest franchises of all time, arguably a cultural phenomenon, and Snyder hasn't created anything that has anywhere near the same level of popularity. If anything he's known for playing a big role in almost destroying the DC brand.
Urubrodi
Urubrodi - 8/29/2023, 10:21 AM
@PlusUltra - Exactly, the DC brand might not ever be the same again after the DCEU. I personally don't think James Gunn will be able to turn this around in the way some are expecting. I hope I am wrong though.
Origame
Origame - 8/29/2023, 10:58 AM
@Shivermetimbers - it was pretty bad too.
Origame
Origame - 8/29/2023, 11:01 AM
@Urubrodi - ahsoka was miserably bad. And obi wan didn't even make sense internally let alone in terms of the full Canon.

And honestly I don't see the problem with just animations. Most of what you mentioned were animated anyway.

And dude, disney didn't create star wars either. That was lucas. And he considers disney the "white slavers" for how all this was handled.
Urubrodi
Urubrodi - 8/29/2023, 11:22 AM
@Origame - Show me in what part of my comment I said that Disney created Star Wars. Lucas decided to sell it out so now all he can do is watch, that’s just how it is, if he wanted to still have some sort of creative control he should have made sure that the contract included that. As for the rest of your comment that’s all just your opinion about the quality of the content and nothing to do with the main point of the article that is Snyder’s producers disregarding one of the biggest franchises ever without having any credibility to do so.
Origame
Origame - 8/29/2023, 11:29 AM
@Urubrodi - you said Snyder didn't create anything on the level of star wars. Well disney didn't make star wars either.

Or are you honestly saying the disney content would get any recognition without the star wars brand?
Urubrodi
Urubrodi - 8/29/2023, 11:34 AM
@Origame - Comparing Disney with Snyder is a poor comparison, a lot of filmmakers worked on Star Wars under Disney with varying degrees of success. Why not look at Snyder’s performance dealing with existing IP instead? Let’s say DC
dagenspear
dagenspear - 8/29/2023, 12:24 PM
@Urubrodi - Haven't seen much particular quality from Ahsoka so far, to me.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 8/29/2023, 12:25 PM
@Origame - But that's not saying Disney created it.
Urubrodi
Urubrodi - 8/29/2023, 12:26 PM
@dagenspear - I mean as an introduction to the series I thought the first 2 epi did their job well imo. In any case I think it's too early to jump into conclusions in either way.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 8/29/2023, 12:26 PM
@Origame - I don't see a statement on the Kenobi show and miserably bad I'd argue is a fairly extreme statement, in my opinion.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 8/29/2023, 12:27 PM
@Urubrodi - I don't fully disagree as a whole. But I have seen a much strong character/story aspects either. I felt it was more not interesting.
Origame
Origame - 8/29/2023, 2:05 PM
@Urubrodi - I mean, even among the dc movies he did there was clear growing interest in his interpretation. Honestly worst thing about it was wb getting cold feet.

But even with the successes they always had caveats. Rogue one really didn't add much of necessity. Andor was purposefully made to not feel like star wars. Same with mandalorian. Visions as mentioned before was the only media of star wars made to be non Canon. The video games had lucasfilm at a firm distance. And clone wars final season was already written prior to Disney.

And using existing IPs also includes 300 and dawn of the dead. Two movies that made him a household name. Not to mention watchmen which was a near shot for shot recreation of the comics.
Origame
Origame - 8/29/2023, 2:06 PM
@dagenspear - it's a clear implication. We're talking specifically about disney star wars.
Origame
Origame - 8/29/2023, 2:07 PM
@dagenspear - I mean, the miserably bad was for ahsoka. I said kenobi doesn't make sense internally let alone as part of the franchise.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 8/29/2023, 3:07 PM
@Origame - But they didn't bring up Kenobi in their description of Star Wars from Disney they thought worked.
dagenspear
dagenspear - 8/29/2023, 3:07 PM
@Origame - I don't think that aligns with what I've seen from the Ahsoka show.
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