What was Rebel Moon's budget? We check how much Netflix' sci-fi cost

Zack Snyder has come a long way before he could realize his great dream – making the space opera Rebel Moon. The project hadn't gained much attention from major film studios, even when the director wanted his epic work to be a part of Star Wars universe, the film didn't click with the executives. Netflix, however, after its rise to the position of leading streaming giant, saw potential in Snyder's project and we will soon find out whether the new brand will threaten the already-well-established franchise fathered by George Lucas.

How about the budget?

If we look at how much Rebel Moon cost , it is understandable that we are expecting a truly epic production. Netflix spent 166 million dollars on both parts (yes, the second movie is already underway). Admittedly, these are no small coins, and surely a director of lesser renown than Zack Snyder could not count on similar trust. As to be expected, Rebel Moon is Netlix's most expensive film of 2023. Only Red Notice from 2021 and The Grey Man (2022) cost the streaming giant more.

Why did producing Rebel Moon cost so much?

There are several reasons why Snyder's masterpiece generated so much cost. Considering that the new Star Wars trilogy was released not so long ago, Netflix probably envied Disney and also wanted to have its own space opera. And for the movie of this genre to be believable and successful, major expenses are needed. Especially that fantasy/scifi plots require top-of-the-line special effects. And this is just the tip of the iceberg. Scenography and costumes cost much more – special effects are done for the fraction of their cost. However, all these expenses are to achieve one thing only – the space opera simply looking good and believable – Netflix couldn't skimp on this. Also, combat sequences and firefights that are in abundance in movies like these, are not the cheapest to produce/film.

Related:Is Rebel Moon part of Star Wars? Origin of Zack Snyder's sci-fi film

Advertising is another major position on the expenses list, and Rebel Moon also didn't fall back in this regard. If an expensive movie is made, it needs to be properly promoted so it reaches a high position at the box office and makes enough money to return the costs and earn big for its producer. As a result, a large chunk of the budget was at the disposal of the marketers. Of course, their task wasn't that hard – having Snyder onboard and more importantly – at the helm, and associations with Star Wars, both in terms of the subject matter, space setting, and dividing the spectacle into two installments.

Will the money pumped into Rebel Moon translate into a classic blockbuster with a soul – the only thing we expect from spectacles like these? We will find out on December 22 . That's when Part 1: A Child of Fire will premiere on the Netflix platform.

More:Rebel Moon: Part One - A Child of Fire ending explained

Pamela Jakiel

Pamela Jakiel

Finished film studies, graduate of the Faculty Individual Studies in the Humanities at the Jagiellonian University. Her master's thesis was about new spirituality in contemporary cinema. The editor of the gamepressure.com since April 2023. She used to write for naEkranie. If she's not watching The Ninth Gate for the hundredth time, then she's reading books by Therese Bohman and Donna Tartt for the first time. She prefers gnosis over dread, dramas over horrors, Jung over Freud. She looks for symbolist paintings in museums. Runs long distances, and does even the longer ones on a gravel. Loves dachshunds.