Rogue Trooper might be a bit obscure in the states, and that's probably why I didn't realize there were people looking to make an adaptation of the blue-skinned , gun-toting comic book action hero “19” from the storied 2000 AD line of comics. To add to the excitement, Duncan Jones, the man behind Moon, Source Code and the Warcraft movie is helming the animated feature that has been ‘filmed’ entirely using Unreal Engine 5.
Rogue Trooper’s story will follow Genetic Soldier 19 and three of his fallen comrades–one stored in his helmet, one in his rucksack and one in his gun–as they embark on a mission to avenge his dead comrades and find out who betrayed them.
The film was made at Rebellion Film Studios in Oxfordshire, with Aneurin Barnard starring as 19 along with Hayley Atwell (Captain America: The First Avenger), Jack Lowden (Slow Horses, Dunkirk), Daryl McCormack (Bad Sisters, Good Luck To You Leo Grande) and Reece Shearsmith (Inside No. 9, Saltburn), Jemaine Clement (Avatar 2: The Way of Water), Matt Berry (What We Do in the Shadows), Diane Morgan (Cunk on Earth), Alice Lowe (Black Mirror), Asa Butterfield (Sex Education, Hugo) and Sean Bean (Game of Thrones, The Lord of the Rings).
Rogue Trooper is a long running comic series from 2000 AD comics, the same publication that gave the world Judge Dredd. It’ll be great to see what a feature film adaptation of Rogue Trooper will look like, but there hasn’t been much to see beyond a lone teaser image.
However, it sounds like the actors portraying the characters may be doing more than just voicing them. Producer Stuart Fenegan commented: “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. 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.”
Rebellion CEO, Jason Kingsley CBE, who is a Producer on Rogue Trooper, added: “We are thrilled to be working with Duncan Jones, who is a fellow British creative visionary and 2000 AD fan with global reach. Rogue Trooper highlights Rebellion’s leading position within the entertainment industries. 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.”
The Rogue Trooper comic was created by legendary artist Dave Gibbons (Watchmen, Kingsman) and writer Gerry Finley-Day (Dan Dare) and released by British publishers 2000 AD, home to Judge Dredd, Halo Jones and Sláine.
Rogue Trooper is produced by Stuart Fenegan (Moon, Source Code, Warcraft, Mute) alongside Jason Kingsley (Dredd, School's Out Forever), Chris Kingsley (Dredd, School's Out Forever) and Duncan Jones. The film is set to complete in 2025.