A new sci-fi film from Source Code and Mute director Duncan Jones is coming with an animated adaptation of the 2000 AD comic Rogue Trooper featuring Aneurin Barnard (Dunkirk), Hayley Atwell (Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning) and Jack Lowden (Slow Horses) in its voice cast.
Rogue Trooper, created by artist Dave Gibbons (Watchmen) and writer Gerry Finley-Day (Dan Dare), follows the ‘Genetic Infantryman’ 19, “who finds himself the sole-survivor of an invasion force. Desperate to track down the traitor who sold him and his comrades out, the super soldier is accompanied by three killed-in-action squad mates, whose personalities have been stored in his gun, helmet and rucksack.”
Barnard will star as 19, the soldier come to be known as the Rogue Trooper. The film has already wrapped production in the UK and will be animated from Treehouse Digital using Epic’s Unreal Engine 5 with Rebellion Film Studios and Liberty Films producing.
Starring alongside the trio are Daryl McCormack (Bad Sisters), Reece Shearsmith (Saltburn), Jemaine Clement (Flight of the Conchords), Matt Berry (What We Do in the Shadows), Diane Morgan (Cunk on Earth), Alice Lowe (Black Mirror), Asa Butterfield (Sex Education) and Sean Bean (Game of Thrones).
Jones said: “2000 AD offers a very different flavor of comic action: Political and brutal at times, but always with a Pythonesque twinkle in the eye,” Jones said. “strong>Dredd was a taste of what 2000 AD has to offer and now we get to show the world another side of the beast. It is a genuine privilege to be given the opportunity to make Rogue Trooper.”
Rogue Trooper was first published in 1981 and has seen a few reboots as it has followed different Genetic Infantryman along with several video games being made of the property.
“The advancements in Unreal Engine 5 and the inclusion of MetaHuman rigs mean that it is now possible to achieve a very high standard of animation within an indie budget,” said producer Sean Fenegan. “Working with our amazing partners at Rebellion, Epic and Treehouse Digital we are pioneering and developing a new creative pipeline that will enable independent production of CG animated films.”
“Rogue Trooper highlights Rebellion’s leading position within the entertainment industries,” said Rebellion CEO Jason Kingsley. “It has been filmed at our dedicated Oxfordshire film studios and combines beautiful storytelling from our iconic 2000 AD comic-book universe with animation and production technology from the video game industry. We cannot wait for everyone to see these incredible stories brought to life on screen.”
There is no release date currently, but Rogue Trooper is expected to conclude its animation and post-production next year.
Ricky Church – Follow me on Twitter for more movie news and nerd talk.
