Zack Snyder’s highly anticipated new movieRebel Mooninches closer to release every day. But many people don’t know it was originally meant to be a Star Wars project. Snyder actually came up with the idea forRebel Moonwhen he was in film school. It was conceived to be in the Star Wars universe, but when he finally got the chance to pitch it to Lucasfilm, they turned him down.
Naturally, fans of Zack Snyder would have the instinctive reaction to boo Lucasfilm for such a terrible slight. But it turns outRebel Moon’s producers and those close to Snyder say that they’re much happier this way. And they’re expressing themselves in words you might not hear inside a Jedi temple.
Rebel Moonis a project people have been excited about for a long time. Although the idea of aStar Wars film directed by Zack Snyderis certainly appealing to a lot of fans, the creative forces behind the actual work seem to think giving Snyder his own galaxy far, far away was a better direction to go in. Even now, as we learn Moon, its creation, and the path it took to be developed, we can tell it’s a movie worth waiting for.
Creating Rebel Moon
WhenZack Snyder first conceived ofRebel Moon, he thought of it as a Star Wars movie. The whole idea came from Akira Kurosawa’s legendary filmSeven Samurai. He wanted to take this black-and-white 1955 film and put it far into the future. Which, to be fair, is a good idea to pitch to Lucasfilm. George Lucas was inspired by many of Kurosawa’s works himself.
But when it turned out the two worlds couldn’t mesh, it wasn’t a bad thing, at least not for the producers. Deborah Snyder, Zack’s wife and chief business partner, seemed determined to haveRebel Moonbe something wholly original./Film quoted her:
“Once, it was a Star Wars film, and I never wanted it to be. 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 — we got to do a little bit of that in the world of zombies, and with Las Vegas, but to do something that is fantastical, we say it’s a science fantasy more than science fiction, and to take all those skills that Zack has been honing, and to do something in this space, just seemed really exciting.”
It’s certainly something to say after all those years working for DC. You don’t go through that kind of filmmaking without learning something. Along with gaining a hefty amount of experience in Sci-Fi films, apparently, the Snyder troupe gained a lot of experience about being limited by a particular IP. Now, they, like their fans, see it as much more freeing to work in their own universe.
Related:10 Movies to Watch While You Wait For Rebel Moon
Who Needs Star Wars?
Zack Snyder is a director whose biggest claim to fame so far has beenhis director’s cutof the 2017Justice Leaguemovie. But beyond that, he seems like a person who is very admiring of particular IPs. The fact that he appreciates universes like DC or Star Wars tells you just what kind of material influenced his filmmaking. But when it got down to actually making the films, sometimes it’s better to separate yourself from what you love.
Related:Every Zack Snyder Movie, Ranked by Rotten Tomatoes
Eric Newman,one of Snyder’s producers, certainly saw these IPs as more of a hindrance than a help. He certainly didn’t want to see Snyder change his ideas to fit into someone else’s Sci-Fi story. He made a point of feeling very independent from Star Wars. And celebrating when Snyder decided he didn’t need it to accomplish his vision.
“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! F*** ‘Star Wars!’ Let’s do this as a TV show.'”
Of course, they didn’t end up doingRebel Moonas a TV show, but the point he expressed was something many creatives might share. Sometimes, these big, lingering IPs can become so crowded with lore and require so much canon to be elbowed into your story that the filmmaker ends up losing some level of authorship over their own work. Eric Newman certainly seems to think so.
