Good things take time, as anyone who’s ever watched "Apocalypse Now: Redux" can attest. That said, the wait for a "300" sequel, prequel, or whatever they want to call it, has gone on for quite a while.

Plans for "300: Battle of Artemisia" began to slowly develop this year, with a tentative release date set for August 2, 2013.

But according to Rodrigo Santoro, reprising his role as the Persian king Xerxes, things are definitely moving along.

"We start shooting in July," Santoro told Collider. " They’re working on the very, well you never know, but last draft of the script. I think they’re calling it a spin-off because it’s not exactly a prequel, it’s not a sequel."

Moving on, Santoro clarified the film’s concept: "It takes place in the same time, you start a little earlier but then you see that it’s like a different point of view, a different camera, a different angle. While that battle was happening, the one that you saw in '300,' there was another battle happening next to it and you will have a chance to see all of that happening and how they interact. I don't want to ruin it."

That makes a certain kind of sense. After all, a direct sequel would be difficult to produce, what with the fact that 299 of the 300 Spartan soldiers sent to defeat Xerxes are dead at the end of "300." Santoro also told Collider that "Artemisia" will explain some of Xerxes’ backstory—or so he thinks.

"They are working on, right now, trying to explain it, I think they will try to do a little backstory on Xerxes and they will explain how he became 'the God King,' which I’m excited about," he said. "I don't know what it's going to be. I've never played a character twice. It's interesting. I think the challenging thing for me now will be to try to bring something new for the fans, for the audience and for myself just to make it interesting to play it again."

In other words: He’s just as out of the loop as the rest of us. We imagine he’ll get a better idea now that filming is officially taking place.

What do you want to see in "300: Battle of Artemisia"? Let us know in the comments below and on Twitter!