Zack Snyder’s Rebel Moon And Army Of The Dead Share A Story Universe

Since departing the DC Universe, director Zack Snyder has brought his energy and focus back into original projects such as Army of the Dead and the upcoming Rebel Moon, both for Netflix. While it might seem that the two films have nothing in common aside from the filmmaker, they are actually part of a bigger shared universe.

Talking to Total Film, Snyder revealed that Rebel Moon–which started as a failed Star Wars pitch–shares ties with Army of the Dead, his post-apocalyptic, zombie-filled heist film, but not in the way you might think.

“Army of the Dead has a pretty vast mythology that never made it into the movie,” Snyder explains, via GamesRadar. “There’s actually a character from Rebel Moon in the Army of the Dead animated series that we never did.”

Army of the Dead debuted on Netflix in 2021 starring Guardians of the Galaxy’s Dave Bautista and Yellowjackets’ Ella Purnell, with Tig Notaro as a last-minute replacement for Chris D’Elia. A few months later, the prequel Army of Thieves was released. Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas, the animated show that Snyder is referencing, was supposed to hit Netflix straight after the first two movies but was never finished.

“At one point in the show, they go through a portal into another dimension, and there are characters in that other dimension that they come across,” Snyder continued. “In Rebel Moon, they’re in this bar, and one of the aliens is one of the characters from the [animated series]. So it’s definitely a shared universe.”

Rebel Moon stars Charlie Hunnam, Sofia Boutella, and Justice League alumni Ray Fischer that tells the story of a young woman who must build an army to fight back against the tyrannical forces who are threatening her home.

Rebel Moon Part 1 lands on Netflix on December 22, 2023. Rebel Moon Part 2 will debut also on Netflix on April 19, 2024. Both Army of the Dead and Army of Thieves are both available to stream on Netflix right now.