Sofia Boutella has been deeply immersed in her Rebel Moon character, Kora (aka Arthelais), for well over two years now—ever since she began training for the back-to-back shoot for the two-part movie series in January 2022.
“It was nine months of filming, but it was an entire year of working on the project,” Boutella told Decider in a recent Zoom interview. “We spent more time in our costumes than in our normal clothes.”
The second film in Zack Snyder’s self-described “rejected Star Wars pitch,” Rebel Moon – Part Two: The Scargiver, began streaming on Netflix today, five months after the release of Part One. Boutella stars as Kora, once a brainwashed soldier for the evil Imperium Motherworld, now a rebel fighter dedicated to defending the farming community that lives on the moon known as Veldt. The first movie found Kora and her love interest, Gunnar (Michiel Huisman) recruiting a team of fighters. Now the second movie is all about the fight, against the back-from-the-dead villain, Atticus Noble (Ed Skrein). An R-rated cut of the film is also expected to be released at a later date.
Netflix’s hype for this sequel has been noticeably muted in comparison to the lead-up to Rebel Moon Part One, which received scathing reviews from critics. Boutella—an Algerian dancer-turned-action-hero, known for her roles in Kingsman: The Secret Service and Atomic Blonde— admitted the critical response to the first film “affected” her. “I thought I had a thick skin, but I’m human,” she said. “When you care so much about something, it’s OK to be honest with your feelings.” But, Boutella added, she’s comforted by the response from fans who loved the movie, and by her positive experience working with Snyder, the cast, and crew. “I have absolutely no regret.”
Boutella spoke to Decider about her time as Kora, how she filmed the movie’s jaw-dropping fight scenes, and her hopes for Rebel Moon 3.
Warning: Spoilers for Rebel Moon Part Two ahead. Save this interview until after you’ve watched the movie.
DECIDER: I read that Zack Snyder had all the actors learn how to harvest wheat so he could shoot that sequence without doubles—what was that experience like?
SOFIA BOUTELLA: We had to go to Santa Clarita, all of us and get the tools—I always forget what they’re called, it was over two years ago, by the way—but we had real wheat fields that Zack grew. We got to practice on that. It was fun! We had to really harvest it. I don’t know the terms, I completely forgot, but we got to do it all. And there’s footage for that, by the way—there’s behind-the-scenes. Michiel [Huisman] had to do way more, because that’s what [Gunnar] does. But we still learned how to do it. I have the grains, and I put it in the jar that is in my kitchen. I have three wheat stems. I kept a little bit of it. Worse comes to worse, I can maybe grind it, and make a little piece of bread out of it, and eat it. [Laughs.]
This was a very long shoot, because Part 1 and Part 2 filmed back-to-back. What was challenging and what was rewarding about such a unusually long production?
It was nine months of filming, but it was an entire year of working on the project. I started with the stunt team in January [2022], and we wrapped December 15, that same year. For me, I found it to be rewarding, because you get to spend so much time with your character. We spent more time in our costumes than in our normal clothes, let’s put it that way. It gives you—in the writing, we had backstories. We had so much that was written down for us. We got to shoot all these backstories. When you don’t have such an extended amount of time to work on a project, you do a lot of journaling. I write a lot about the past stories of my character. And for this particular film, I got to actually shoot it. I found that it was really rewarding in that way.
Was there background for Kora you invented that made it into the film?
I didn’t come up with the background—the background of her story was written for me. But there were a few things I came up with—I remember telling Zack I’d love to have a buzz cut. I didn’t think that the Imperium would allow women to have a ponytail, or their hair down, in any way, shape, or form. But I think that they would still want to differentiate between man and a woman, and that’s why I thought it would be cool if there was a V at the end. When I was on Veldt, I wanted to keep one piece of one element from the Motherworld. I wanted it to remind me of the princess, because it is one element that is positive to Kora’s backstory. So I asked if I could have a ring, because if you had that ring that means that you were one of the guards of the princess. Other characters also ended up wearing it but, I came up with that.
Did you work with the costuming department on Kora’s clothing, too?
Stephanie [Portnoy Porter], our costume designer, did an incredible job. Zack wanted a cape, because it looks so cinematic and looks good on camera, especially in slow motion. But I wanted there to be a reason to why she wears it. Because she is the most wanted fugitive in the universe, for me, the cloak was her protection—her disguise for people to not be able to recognize who she is. So for me, what is an aesthetic element became part of the story. For example, the corset was an element that Stephanie designed. I thought, “OK, what do I do with that? Why do I wear a corset?” For me, if it’s just purely aesthetic, it’s not enough. I need to have a background and a story to why I’m wearing what I’m wearing. Having been in wars and on battlefields for so long, [Kora] probably doesn’t have the best back. And she probably needs support. [Laughs.] Genuinely! When you find her on Veldt, she’s plowing the land, I thought, “That’s what she was wearing the corset. It’s back support!”
That gave me the idea—which I’m happy about—you will see that in the extended version, that Kora has injuries. I asked Zack if it would be OK, when you see my skin, if we can see injuries. And he said yes. I truly had a say, and got the opportunity to be creative with the character. Thanks to Zack for that, because he allowed that for me.
You have great chemistry with Michiel Huisman in this movie, and you guys get this big movie kiss at the beginning of the movie. Can you tell me about working with him and filming that big kiss scene?
That scene is so sweet and so gentle. And I think it’s so needed in this this big war film. It gives a gift, a sense of humanity, and a sense of calm and peace. It has been said a lot that this is a war film. But, actually, I think at the heart, it is anti-war movie. It is a movie that promotes peace—that is yearning for calm. That’s what all these people are fighting for. Kora and Gunnar’s love for one another is something that holds a lot of the film. It’s the reason why we’re fighting, in a way, because at the end of the day, we want that love to exist, to be real, and for it to flourish.
[SPOILER ALERT: Stop reading now if you want to remain unspoiled!]
In contrast, there’s this emotional scene where Kora is forced to kill Princess Issa. I know you have said it was hard for you to reconcile with that action.
It’s something that was very difficult for me to overcome—the forgiveness that I had to allow, me, Sofia, to have. As an actor, you have to be the advocate of your character, the lawyer of your character. I found it very hard to find the forgiveness. I couldn’t understand, but I had to put myself in those shoes. Kora was highly brainwashed and manipulated. That’s what I realized later on—she thought she was doing the right thing when she was fighting for the Motherworld. She thought her cause was great. When she killed the princess, she was made to believe that this was the right thing to do.
Basically, once she realized that she was manipulated, she entered this endless spiral of guilt that didn’t leave her until she found an opportunity to defend, finally, the right cause. When [Rebel Moon Part 1] starts, you can see her—she’s plowing the land, working extra hours, more than other people. I think that comes from a sense of guilt. She’s not able to let people love her. She’s not able to fully love other people. She is unable to let people in, and I think that’s because of a great sense of guilt.
Can you tell me about filming that final fight scene with Ed Skrein, where you guys are sliding down a ship? It looked crazy—and really cool.
Yeah, it was pretty crazy! First of all, I’ve never seen a fight scene on a slope like this, for quite some time. We had about a 20-meter slanted stage for us to do that on. The logistics that it took for our stunt team, for our camera team, and for all the rigging of that scene—including what we had to have on the slope! Sometimes you had a box sliding, sometimes a pole. In the movie, it looks like a one continuous sequence, which was not realistic for us. And we had to rehearse it on a flat floor and pretend that we’re sliding. The logistics of it all was pretty complicated. When we were filming it, we had to reset in between each take—we had to climb back up! So it felt like we were on a hike for about two weeks. It was quite an experience. But it was fun. The end result, when I saw the film, I was quite impressed. It was pretty phenomenal.
The Rebel Moon Part 2 ending definitely sets up another movie. What can you say about Rebel Moon 3? And if there is a third movie, what would you like to see happen for Kora?
Well, you know how the movie ends—yes to fighting, and yes to finding the princess. I would love more than anything to find the princess! But I don’t know. I’m not sure about that. But what I can tell you is that I love working with Zack, and I love my cast mates so much. I had an amazing experience on this film. So I’ll go back to it anytime.
Your love interest, Gunnar, does die at the end of this movie. How did you feel when you first read that in the script?
“Oh, no!” That’s what I thought. [Laughs.] “Oh, no!” I just thought, “Wow, this woman is going through a lot! She cannot catch a break.” I thought that it was really sad. But I also thought this is bold writing. It’s pushing the boundaries of circumstances. I have to go there, I have to play this. I thought it was unusual, unpredictable, and unexpected, which is different. And I thought, “Why not? Let’s do it.”
You recently said that the negative reviews of Rebel Moon Part 1 affected you. Could you expand on that? How has it affected your anticipation of the critical reaction to Part 2?
I just didn’t want to spend time and energy pretending that I was OK. It affected me. I’m sensitive. We worked really hard on the film. We gave it our heart and soul. It involved so many crew members, and people that truly care. We all got along so well, and it was truly a joy for us to be a part of. So that’s the reason why it affected me. You know, I’ve danced my whole life. I thought I had a thick skin, but I’m human. When you care so much about something, it’s OK to be honest with your feelings. But I think that I’m OK. I find solace in the fact that the audience truly loves it. We’ve had people truly being inspired by it. I come here, and I’m doing press for the film, and my cast mates are here, and I’m so happy to see them. I absolutely loved working with Zack. He’s such a great creative. And I loved working with Netflix. So for me, all in all, it was truly an amazing experience that I have absolutely no regret about.
Rebel Moon: Part One and Rebel Moon: Part Two are both currently available to stream on Netflix.
