Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV News
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsCannes Film FestivalStar WarsAsian Pacific American Heritage MonthSummer Watch GuideSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • FAQ
IMDbPro

Reign of Fire

  • 2002
  • PG-13
  • 1h 41m
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
149K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
3,245
455
Reign of Fire (2002)
Home Video Trailer from Touchstone Home Entertainment
Play trailer2:32
1 Video
99+ Photos
Dark FantasyActionAdventureFantasyThriller

A brood of fire-breathing dragons emerges from the earth and begins setting everything ablaze, establishing dominance over the planet.A brood of fire-breathing dragons emerges from the earth and begins setting everything ablaze, establishing dominance over the planet.A brood of fire-breathing dragons emerges from the earth and begins setting everything ablaze, establishing dominance over the planet.

  • Director
    • Rob Bowman
  • Writers
    • Gregg Chabot
    • Kevin Peterka
    • Matt Greenberg
  • Stars
    • Matthew McConaughey
    • Christian Bale
    • Izabella Scorupco
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.2/10
    149K
    YOUR RATING
    POPULARITY
    3,245
    455
    • Director
      • Rob Bowman
    • Writers
      • Gregg Chabot
      • Kevin Peterka
      • Matt Greenberg
    • Stars
      • Matthew McConaughey
      • Christian Bale
      • Izabella Scorupco
    • 645User reviews
    • 138Critic reviews
    • 39Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win & 3 nominations total

    Videos1

    Reign of Fire
    Trailer 2:32
    Reign of Fire

    Photos129

    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    + 123
    View Poster

    Top cast36

    Edit
    Matthew McConaughey
    Matthew McConaughey
    • Denton Van Zan
    Christian Bale
    Christian Bale
    • Quinn Abercromby
    Izabella Scorupco
    Izabella Scorupco
    • Alex Jensen
    Gerard Butler
    Gerard Butler
    • Creedy
    Scott Moutter
    Scott Moutter
    • Jared Wilke
    • (as Scott James Moutter)
    David Kennedy
    David Kennedy
    • Eddie Stax
    Alexander Siddig
    Alexander Siddig
    • Ajay
    Ned Dennehy
    Ned Dennehy
    • Barlow
    Rory Keenan
    Rory Keenan
    • Devon
    Terence Maynard
    Terence Maynard
    • Gideon
    Doug Cockle
    Doug Cockle
    • Goosh
    Randall Carlton
    Randall Carlton
    • Burke (Tito)
    Chris Kelly
    • Mead
    Ben Thornton
    Ben Thornton
    • Young Quinn
    Alice Krige
    Alice Krige
    • Karen Abercromby
    Malcolm Douglas
    Malcolm Douglas
    • Stuart
    Dessie Gallagher
    • Jess
    Martin Linnane
    • Mole #1
    • Director
      • Rob Bowman
    • Writers
      • Gregg Chabot
      • Kevin Peterka
      • Matt Greenberg
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    More like this

    Equilibrium
    7.3
    Equilibrium
    The 13th Warrior
    6.6
    The 13th Warrior
    DragonHeart
    6.4
    DragonHeart
    Sahara
    6.1
    Sahara
    A Knight's Tale
    7.0
    A Knight's Tale
    Pitch Black
    7.0
    Pitch Black
    The Time Machine
    6.0
    The Time Machine
    The Making of 'Reign of Fire'
    7.6
    The Making of 'Reign of Fire'
    King Arthur
    6.3
    King Arthur
    Beowulf
    6.3
    Beowulf
    Underworld
    7.0
    Underworld
    Waterworld
    6.3
    Waterworld

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The flame breath was inspired by the bombardier beetles, small carabid coleopters. Their peculiar defense mechanism involves the ejection from their abdomen of two different chemicals, which react and produce a hot noxious spray. This was the actual base for the dragons' breath, as explained by Dan DeLeeuw: "our art director, Mike Meaker, had seen an African beetle with a similar defense mechanism. It sprayed a chemical out its rear and made sparks to ignite the stream. So our idea was that there are two glands at the back of the dragon's throat, producing chemicals. The dragon spits out the liquids with muscles constricting the glands. When the two streams cross 15 or 20 feet in front of the dragon they naturally combust." Before actually spitting fire, the dragons pull back and shake their head -- then thrust it forward violently. This behaviour was once again based on spitting cobras.
    • Goofs
      Van Zan and Alex tell Quinn that there is only one male dragon and, like fish, the females lay their eggs and the male makes a "pass" to fertilize them. Yet when Quinn discovers the egg inside the downed dragon, there is an embryo visible, which should only happen AFTER fertilization.
    • Quotes

      Denton Van Zan: Envy the country that has heroes, huh? I say pity the country that needs them.

    • Connections
      Featured in Troldspejlet: Episode #27.3 (2002)
    • Soundtracks
      Fire
      Written and Performed by Jimi Hendrix

      Courtesy of Experience Hendrix LLC/MCA Records

      Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

    User reviews645

    Featured review

    Silly but entertaining b-grade post-apocalyptic thriller.

    Seems like I'm in a minority enjoying this one! It amazes me that so many people are quick to put the boot in to this (admittedly) silly but entertaining b-grade post-apocalyptic thriller yet line up to watch the absolutely awful and overblown Star Wars movies. Yes, I said b-grade, because despite the budget being close to $100 million, that's exactly what it is, a b-grade sci fi movie, no more, no less. Fans of Roy Ward Baker's 'Quatermass and the Pit', Larry Cohen's 'Q: The Winged Serpent' and Tobe Hooper's 'Lifeforce', all of which 'Reign Of Fire' reminded me of at various points, will enjoy this one more than the Blockbuster crowd. Christian Bale ('American Psycho') and Matthew McConaughey ('Frailty') are both pretty good as the leader of an underground community and a hardass military man respectively, who both have different approaches to their shared problem - the ongoing threat of dragon attacks. Yes, in this future dragons are real and have devastated the world, and only a handful of human survivors exist. Once you can accept that premise, and some of the "scientific" explanations for the why and wherefores of the dragons, you're in for a wild ride. No-one's gonna argue this is a great movie, but it's a lot of fun, and I recommend it, especially with beer and pizza.
    • Infofreak
    • May 26, 2003
    • Permalink

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    FAQ21

    • How long is Reign of Fire?Powered by Alexa
    • Van Zan mentions that he was able to kill a dragon during "magic hour" what was he talking about?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • July 12, 2002 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • El reinado del fuego
    • Filming locations
      • Wicklow Gap, County Wicklow, Ireland
    • Production companies
      • Touchstone Pictures
      • Spyglass Entertainment
      • The Zanuck Company
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $60,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $43,061,982
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $15,632,281
      • Jul 14, 2002
    • Gross worldwide
      • $82,150,183
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 41 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • DTS
      • Dolby Digital
      • SDDS
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Reign of Fire (2002)
    Top Gap
    What is the Hindi language plot outline for Reign of Fire (2002)?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb app
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb app
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb app
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.