2000 AD has released the first teaser trailer for their upcoming animated indie movie, Rogue Trooper, directed by Duncan Jones (Moon, Source Code) and made by Rebellion and Liberty Films. Based on one of their flagship comic book IPs, this marks the British publisher's fourth film adaptation. 2000 AD is also known for the pop-culture classic, Judge Dredd, which had two movies, one in 1995, Judge Dredd, and the other in 2012, Dredd. Their cult classic, Hardware, had a movie debut in 1990. So, unlike Marvel or DC Comics, adapting their beloved IPs into movies is a rare occasion. However, it looks like they brought everything they had into this project.
Rogue Trooper follows 19 (Aneurin Barnard), a "Genetic Infrantryman," on the warpath for revenge. He's the sole survivor of an invasion force, and he has his equipment for company: a rifle, helmet, and backpack. The thing is, his comrades are with him as quantified minds uploaded into his tools. Soldiers don't go to waste in this dystopian setting of Nu Earth. These tools are fully voiced characters, with Gunnar as the rifle (Jack Lowden), Bagman as the backpack (Reece Shearsmith), and Helm as the helmet (Daryl McCormack). It's something so bombastic and high-concept that I'd watch it based on this premise, but that alone isn't the most interesting thing about this movie.
Making film has never been more accessible to studios and individuals with a smaller budget. Popular animating software like Blender allowed a movie like Flow (2024) to exist, which went on to win several awards as an indie animated film. This is similar to Rogue Trooper, which was animated entirely in Unreal Engine 5, a game engine developed by Epic Games that is widely known as an industry-leading platform.
To me, it definitely looks like it was animated in a game engine––as if I'm waiting through a video game cutscene (sometimes my favorite part), but that brings so much charm to the art style. Of course, this is only a teaser, so looks could change in the future, but I like what I see.
Rogue Trooper had a video adaptation 20 years ago in 2006. Developed by no other than Rebellion Interactive, its reception was fairly positive, even though it hasn't received a sequel since. It did get a REDUX (remaster) in 2017. All these years later, it makes sense the original video game devs would have a hand in helping make this animated film using Unreal Engine 5.
In addition to Barnard, Lowden, Shearsmith, and McCormack, the cast of Rogue Trooper includes Hayley Atwell (Captain America: The First Avenger), 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).
A release date for Rogue Trooper hasn't yet been announced, but given its long production time it could release sometime in 2026.
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