Zack Snyder Thought Star Wars Was "In A Vulnerable State" When He Pitched R-Rated Movie

More than a decade ago, Man of Steel director Zack Snyder pitched an R-rated Star Wars movie to Lucasfilm. The company did not bite, and now Snyder has spoken more about how it all went down. He's speaking about this just ahead of the release of his sci-fi Netflix movie Rebel Moon, which is what Snyder's Star Wars pitch morphed into.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Snyder said when he pitched Lucasfilm in 2012, he thought Star Wars "was in a vulnerable state." Given that, Snyder said he thought he had a chance. But just six months later, Disney announced its intent to purchase Lucasfilm, and that ended that.

Snyder's wife and producing partner Deborah Snyder was excited that her husband's pitch got rejected, because she never thought Zack would be able to tell the story he wanted to tell. Snyder had already worked on a giant franchise--DC--and Deborah thought Lucasfilm might be even more protective and hinder her husband's vision.

"She never wanted this to go to Lucasfilm," Snyder said. "You think you have a hard time with DC? You think you're mad at them because they won't let you do what you want? What do you think Star Wars is going to be?' When it fell apart, she was like, 'This is the best thing that could have happened to you.'"

After the movie deal didn't come together, Snyder shopped it as a TV show in the vein of "Game of Thrones in space." Each episode was going to tell the story of a character who joined a group of rebels going up against a galactic empire. That didn't go anywhere, either, and the project then became a feature again, and Netflix eventually greenlit the project as a two-part movie.

Rebel Moon stars Sofia Boutella as Kora, a "stranger with a mysterious past." The movie also stars Fra Fee, Ed Skrein, Ray Fisher, Cleopatra Coleman, Michiel Husman, Charlie Hunnam, Djimon Hounsou, and Doona Bae. Anthony Hopkins voices the "ancient mechanized protector" named Jimmy.

Rebel Moon releases in theaters on December 15 before coming to Netflix on December 22. The sequel is due out in April 2024.