Zack Snyder stands on a cold, gray step, where two gargantuan pieces of a Hollywood set meet. Although the director is unassuming in a uniform of putty-colored slacks, a denim button-down, and a weathered baseball cap on this fall afternoon, the space around him is anything but modest. Snyder is surrounded by the makings of a Dreadnought, the “super battleship” set to terrorize the universe of his original sci-fi fantasy adventure, Rebel Moon. In a flash, Snyder disappears into one of many cubbyholes hidden in the chillingly intimidating vessel. After all, this Dreadnought-class ship is a weapon. And like all good weapons, it holds secrets. 

Fans can witness this Dreadnought’s destructive power firsthand in Rebel Moon — Part One: A Child of Fire, now streaming on Netflix. Below, you can find out answers to all of your burning Rebel Moon questions. Well, maybe not all of them — after all, the universe of Rebel Moon is an infinite landscape of mystery and adventure.

What is Rebel Moon — Part One: A Child of Fire about?

The star-trotting epic Rebel Moon is about Kora (Sofia Boutella), a lone-wolf soldier who’s found community and connection on the quiet farming moon of Veldt. She’s a long way away from her former life fighting for the Imperium, the brutal interstellar royal empire bent on controlling the galaxy. But Kora’s violent past is dredged up when sadistic admiral Atticus Noble (Ed Skrein) comes to Veldt via a Dreadnought-class battle cruiser and stirs up deadly trouble on the orders of the Imperium’s tyrannical regent, Balisarius (Fra Fee). 

Will there be a director’s cut of Rebel Moon?

Yes. Snyder has released two director’s cuts, now streaming on Netflix:

• Chapter One: Chalice of Blood
• Chapter Two: Curse of Forgiveness

With the new director’s cuts, you’ll be able to delve further into the mythology and madness of Snyder’s epic sci-fi saga. The two new cuts feature more creatures, more history, and more action sequences. Bloodier, sexier, and altogether more epic: that’s the Zack Snyder promise. You can watch the red band trailer for the director’s cuts here.

Snyder is known for his lavish expanded cuts: Watchmen, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Justice League all saw lengthy extended editions in the months following their releases. Rebel Moon is no different — both films will receive R-rated expansions, a notion planned from the very beginning of the production process. “Let’s make just two movies back-to-back because it’s too epic to do in one film,” Snyder told Netflix about his original pitch. “Oh, and let’s do an extended cut that we’re going to shoot different scenes for. Stuff that people just don’t do.” 

When is Rebel Moon— Part One: A Child of Fire streaming on Netflix?

The first installment of Snyder’s space saga, titled Rebel Moon — Part One: A Child of Fire, is now streaming on Netflix. Find out more about the making of the epic saga below:

Zack Snyder on How Rebel Moon Is a Rebellion 30 Years in the Making

Is there a Rebel Moon — Part Two?

 Rebel Moon — Part Two: The Scargiver is now streaming on Netflix. Watch the trailer below:

Watch the Rebel Moon Part Two: The Scargiver Trailer

Who is the narrator of Rebel Moon?

Rebel Moon opens with the familiar voice of Sir Anthony Hopkins, who plays steadfast guardian robot Jimmy. 

Sadly, robots like Jimmy “are really having a hard time with reality,” Snyder tells Tudum. The AI machines were built with a very specific purpose in mind, and now Jimmy is “kind of disillusioned” and has lost the will to fight. Luckily, the warrior humans around him have enough will for the entire moon of Veldt. 

Find out more about the history of the Jimmys with The Seneschal, a new narrative fiction podcast that unravels the tale of their genesis 500 years in the past. 

Who is in the cast of Rebel Moon?

When it becomes clear that Noble’s demands on Veldt spell death for the peaceful colony there, Kora starts off on a quest to recruit freedom fighters to her cause. Along the way, Kora teams up with a scrappy group of warriors including Veldt farmer Gunnar (Michiel Huisman), mercenary Kai (Charlie Hunnam), ex-Imperium general Titus (Djimon Hounsou), former nobleman Tarak (Staz Nair), cyborg sword-wielder Nemesis (Doona Bae), refugee Milius (Elise Duffy), and the insurgent siblings Darrian (Ray Fisher) and Devra Bloodaxe (Cleopatra Coleman). Knightly robot Jimmy (voiced by Oscar winner Anthony Hopkins) is also waiting in the wings, after years out of service.

Clay Enos/Netflix

“They’re all misfits,” Snyder says. “They’re all healing and finding a place to belong. It’s a movie about finding a family.” In fact, the director, whose previous blockbusters include 300 and Man of Steel, continues by teasing a scene where Kora and her teammates look upon Veldt and agree that the moon is so beautiful that it’s worth dying on — or fighting hard enough to live upon. “That’s really at the heart of the movie in a lot of ways: Kora finding a place to call home, something that she wants to protect.”   

Clay Enos/Netflix

What is Rebel Moon based on? 

Unlike Snyder’s DC films or his Dawn of the Dead remake, the world of Rebel Moon leapt entirely from his imagination, from the planets to the set design to the very language itself. “I’m always really into the banners, flags, swatches — all the stuff. What it all means and making sure all the lettering is correct,” Snyder says. “[I want] the languages that we created and all the alphabets to be right and actually say the thing they’re supposed to say.” 

For Rebel Moon, the filmmakers created several distinct languages for the film, along with their own alphabets, says Stefan Dechant, one of Rebel Moon’s production designers. Across production design, props, costuming, and more, the Rebel Moon crew also generated currency, musical instruments, religious iconography, and origin stories from scratch. 

“[The art department] didn’t really know me that well,” Snyder says. “And they realized, ‘Oh geez, everything really has to have a backstory? And make sense, be symbolic, and weirdly meaningful?’ And I was like, ‘Well, it’d be cool.’ ” 

As a result of all that effort, Snyder says that Rebel Moon’s mythology “will be on steroids.” This tale is an expansive exploration of a new universe. “I think it’s satisfying for hard-core fans because they’ll be able to take a deep dive into it.”

Are there any cool weapons in Rebel Moon? 

Rebel Moon comes with Snyder’s signature heart-pounding battle sequences. “There are lots of guns, lots of weapons. It’s an action movie,” property master Brad Elliott says on the set, surrounded by faux grenades, machine pistols, and more. So, how will Rebel Moon marry its beating emotional heart with the onslaught of pyrotechnics that are necessary for self-heating swords and battle-ready hammers? 

According to Dechant, the film “is a battle between brutality and harmony.” As Admiral Noble ominously traverses the galaxy, he brings destruction to civilizations and entire worlds. Veldt contrasts the nihilism of the Imperium with its kindness and integration with nature. It’s a “place worth fighting for,” Dechant explained.

As Kora leaves her adopted home to gather her ragtag group of rebel misfits, you can expect some major world-building. To name just one of Snyder’s eye-catching settings, the town of Providence nods to the aesthetics of a town from the Old American West.

Producer Deborah Snyder is most excited to show off Nemesis’ arms, which have gloves that connect to two very special blades. “Her swords charge up with her hands and they become this heated element,” she said. “They’re really something else.” 

You’ll see that sort of fiery hardware all over Rebel Moon. Certain guns use what the prop department called “lava corks.” These bullets have a heavy mass and burn. “We really aimed at getting our weapons to look different,” Elliott says. “We came up with brand new shape language and brand new ideas.” 

Did Zack Snyder write and direct Rebel Moon?

Snyder co-wrote the script with Kurt Johnstad and Shay Hatten, and directs both parts. But that’s not all —  the filmmaker, who also helmed the zombie heist Army of the Dead and produced its prequel Army of Thieves, serves as director of photography on Rebel Moon as well. “For me, it’s harder not to shoot Rebel Moon [as the DP]. At least this way, I don’t have any real downtime and I stay focused,” he says. “It keeps me in it and it’s really fun.” 

Clay Enos/Netflix

What happens at the end of Rebel Moon?

Rebel Moon: Part One ends on quite the cliffhanger. If you’ve seen A Child of Fire, dive into our companion guide for Rebel Moon to discover a sprawling universe of additional history and lore— and find the secret inscription on Noble’s Bone Staff, written in New Imperium font. 

Ed Skrein Reveals the Secret Message on Noble’s Bone Staff in Rebel Moon