On Christmas, Netflix is putting a very special present under our tree: the first part of Zack Snyder’s “Rebel Moon”, which sci-fi and fantasy fans in particular are likely to be eagerly awaiting. But how long will the movie night last?
Originally, director Zack Snyder had an idea for a “Star Wars” movie – and when it didn’t turn into a Star Wars adventure, the “Justice League” maker simply made his own sci-fi universe out of it. We get to see the result in two parts on Netflix: “Rebel Moon: Child of Fire” starts on December 22, 2023, “Rebel Moon 2: The Scar Maker” follows on April 19, 2024 – and who knows, maybe more films of the franchise will come our way in the future.
On its in-house info site Tudum, Netflix now revealed the duration of the first “Rebel Moon” adventure: 2 hours and 13 minutes.
DOESN’T SOUND LIKE MUCH? THERE’S MORE TO COME!
That doesn’t sound like much at first, but it’s now almost common for major spectacle films in particular to last well over two hours. “Dune” lasted 2 hours and 36 minutes, “Avatar 2” even took 3 hours and 12 minutes. But it is exactly this running time that “Rebel Moon” will ultimately break – because a director’s cut of the sci-fi actioner is planned that is a good hour longer.
However, it is still unclear whether Snyder is planning a director’s cut for each of the two parts, or whether a director’s cut for the complete work will be released at the end. Andy Koyama, who works in the sound department on the film, stated earlier this year that there would be “an extended version of each of the two films” – but there has been no official announcement yet.
Adding another hour to a single film with a running time of just over two hours would tell quite a different story, so we’re curious to see if that will actually be the case. However, if Snyder and Netflix only plan to do an overall director’s cut, and if “Rebel Moon 2” also ends up being over two hours long, we could end up with a mammoth work of over five hours.
But that’s all still up in the air. First of all, there is “Rebel Moon – Part 1” on December 22, probably the biggest sci-fi newcomer of the year on Netflix, and the trailer, which you can also watch at the top of this article, makes with epic images and crashing action actually already really mood.
“REBEL MOON”: A STORY LIKE “STAR WARS” COULD TELL…
In “Rebel Moon,” the turmoil that reigns across the galaxy under the rule of the tyrannical Balisarius eventually reaches the remote moon of Veldt. When Balisarius’ army threatens the peaceful inhabitants of the moon, Kora (Sofia Boutella), who lives there, cannot stand idly by. She already has a history with the Empire, and knows what its minions are capable of. She starts to gather brave fighters around her to stand up to the enemy…
In addition to Sofia Boutella as the heroine Kora, the cast includes Charlie Hunnam as Kai, Ed Skrein as Admiral Atticus Noble, Michiel Huisman as Gunnar, Doona Bae as Nemesis, Ray Fisher as Darrian Bloodaxe, Jena Malone as Harmada, Djimon Hounsou as General Titus and Anthony Hopkins as the voice of the robot Jimmy.
