SPOILERS are ahead for Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite, now streaming with a Netflix subscription. Seriously, watch it before you read any further.

I’ll never forget the first time I watched Parasite. Upon hearing all the award buzz about it, prior to it making history as the 2020 Best Picture winner, I caught a screening at a small movie theater. I had no idea I was about to watch one of the best movies I’ve ever seen. But, not unlike the movie’s iconic house having many floors to discover, there are a lot of details to look for during rewatches, and when I recently went back to it, I noticed something new I want to talk about.

I Noticed The Symbolism Of The Scholar’s Rock A Lot More When I Rewatched Parasite This Time

The movie joined 2025 Netflix releases earlier this year, but after it made the top of NY Times’ greatest films of the 21st century, I finally made time to revisit it. This time my eyes inherently gravitated a lot to deciphering the meaning behind the gigantic Scholar’s Rock the Kim’s get at the beginning of the movie.

While I definitely caught on that the rock was a symbol for the status of wealth the Kim’s wish to obtain, I had missed some more subtle hints and deeper meanings before. This time I noticed that when the flood happens in the Kim home, Ki-woo discovers the Scholar’s Rock. I can’t believe I didn’t think about it before, but if the rock was a genuine article, it would have sunk right to the bottom. The Scholar’s Rock represents the Kims as a family, and while they may try to fool the Parks with their masterful plan of becoming their replacement staff, they ultimately cannot deny their composition as people of a much lower socioeconomic class than the Parks.

Now I realize the rock directly connects with the line where Mr. Kim is saying rich people have “no creases on them." It characteristically has rough edges. Plus, the end of the movie, when Ki-woo places the rock in a body of water while sharing his wishes to make money and rescue his father from the basement of the Park home, where he ultimately ends up, holds a whole new meaning to me. Rocks can get smoothed out through weathering over time. So, the rock going in the water follows the journey of Ki-woo trying to smooth out his own family's legacy, rather than remain rough and grasping tight to it for dear life.

Then, I Did A Dive Into Bong Joon-Ho's Intentions With The Rock As Well

Of course, I had to look into the actual intentions behind the rock in Parasite. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Bong Joon-ho said the following:

It is interesting that Ki-woo holds it throughout the movie, and I can definitely see how it symbolizes the weight he feels to keep his family afloat through carrying a literal rock. He also said this:

That brings up another element of the rock I didn’t quite process the last couple of times. The only reason Ki-woo survived getting hit by the rock is because it’s the kind of rock that can float. I watch so many movies where characters survive impossible circumstances, this didn’t even dawn on me before, but I was proverbially bruised by this new layer of Parasite this time around. I can't wait to watch again in a few years, and catch whatever other details are in the movie I haven't noticed yet.

Though Mickey 17 was a movie I planned on seeing in theaters earlier this year, things just didn’t work out. Bummer, I know! Bong Joon-ho’s book-to-screen adaptation of one of the most inventive sci-fi novels of the past decade was one of those films that screamed, “See this on the biggest screen possible,” and I failed. However, I wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice when it joined the list of new and recent movies streaming.

Little did I know that this great sci-fi film would also, oddly enough, also be one of the best romantic comedies I’ve seen in the past couple of years. Before I watched Mickey 17, I thought the 2025 movie would be darkly funny and touch on some heavy themes like Bong’s other great movies, but I honestly didn’t see the new Robert Pattinson flick being a charming rom-com you can now watch with a Max subscription. Let me explain…

Mickey And Nasha's Romance Is At The Core Of Mickey 17

On the surface, Mickey 17 is a journey of Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson in an incredible dual performance), a guy who becomes an “expendable” in space to evade a serious debt on Earth, not knowing what that entails. But as the story unfolds, and the relationship between Mickey and Nasha Barridge (Naomi Ackie) develops, this offbeat satirical comedy also becomes a fascinating and unconventional rom-com.

As the story unfolds and various obstacles and complications (like Mickey dying multiple times and being brought back as a new version of himself) bring challenges to their relationship, these two remain deeply committed to one another, which honestly provides so much heart to this dark comedy. Everything they do is because of their love for each other, which is something I was not expecting from Bong Joon-ho’s follow-up to his Academy Award-winning thriller Parasite. But that’s the beauty of it, right?

Spotting Rom-Com Tropes In A Bong Joon-Ho Movie Wasn't On My 2025 Bingo Card

From a very unconventional love triangle to denying advances from prospective lovers to some highly inventive sex scenes as well as a tale of two lovers going to great lengths to be together, Mickey 17 is full of classic romantic comedy tropes. Honestly, I didn’t expect to see that in a Bong Joon-ho movie, and it certainly wasn’t on my 2025 Bingo card.

On top of having all of your standard sci-fi tropes, space travel movie staples, and the director’s signature biting tone, the staples of the rom-com genre are all up in this movie, and just typing that out sounds absolutely bonkers.

Don't Get Me Wrong, It's Still Very Much A Sci-Fi Flick

Mickey 17 is very much a sci-fi movie, one that has a lot to say about a number of different topics. From the morality of human cloning to man’s obsession with power and control to the prospect of intergalactic travel, this riveting dark comedy does it all. With awesome action sequences, some truly outrageous technology, and some space creatures that are both utterly terrifying and heartbreakingly cute, there’s a lot to love here.

None of the sci-fi elements are hindered by the love story at its core. I would go as far as to say that the Mickey and Nasha dynamic makes everything in this movie even better.

All of this is to say that I didn’t expect checking out a Bong Joon-ho sci-fi movie would give me one of the best rom-com experiences of the year, yet here I am writing to you all, asking you to love this movie (or at least give it a chance).

"Everybody is the hero of their own story." That's an idiom that I have frequently heard and seen in interviews with actors – typically by those playing who are playing villains and aiming to understand the character's perspective. For Robert Pattinson in the making of writer/director Bong Joon Ho's fantastic Mickey 17, however, he found himself taking on a very different kind of protagonist: a hero who can't even begin to comprehend the idea of seeing themselves as a hero.

It's a role that Pattinson clearly delighted taking on, as recognized in the above exclusive clip from the upcoming home video release of the critically acclaimed 2025 movie. He plays the titular Mickey – a simpleton who, in an act of desperation, signs up to be an "expendable" aboard an interstellar ship heading to a planet dubbed Niflheim. The job requires him to be exposed to all kinds of dangerous procedures and environments, and when he dies, a new version of him is printed out.

If this existence sounds absolutely terrible... you are 100 percent correct, and Robert Pattison laughed as he recognized this fact from a macro perspective:

Mickey is not the brightest bulb, but what he has signed up for (albeit without reading the requirements for the gig) does qualify him for hero status. A proper hero is someone who is willing to sacrifice themselves or their own needs for the betterment of others, and that is precisely what the protagonist does in Mickey 17 – and that's all before he has to try and stop the genocide of an extraterrestrial species.

As Robert Pattinson explains, Mickey's self-worth is so pathetic to the point where not only does he not see himself as the hero he is, but he doesn't even recognize just how monstrously he is being treated by his fellow human beings. Says the actor in the clip,

As noted by Bong Joon Ho at the start of the featurette clip, Mickey 17 not only stars Robert Pattinson in a terrific dual role, but the ensemble cast also includes the talents of Naomi Ackie, Mark Ruffalo, Toni Collette, and Steven Yuen. The film first arrived in theaters at the start of last month, but it will be arriving for purchase on digital tomorrow, April 8, from major online retailers. For those of you who dig physical media and are excited to add the movie to your collection, the 4K UHD and Blu-ray will be arriving in stores on May 13.

SPOILER WARNING: The following article gives away a few crucial plot details from Mickey 17. If you have not yet seen the new sci-fi movie, it’s not like we can just print out a new version of you that wipes the memory of these spoilers clean. So, proceed with caution as you read on.

I consider Mickey 17 to be my favorite 2025 movie so far. Similar to Eric Eisenberg’s review of Mickey 17, I think it boasts a highly inventive concept – based on author Edward Ashton’s dystopian novel, Mickey 7 – a dazzling performance by Robert Pattinson as both the title hero and his more ill-tempered clone, and an irresistibly zany satirical tone that could only be perfected by an artist as talented as Bong Joon Ho. However, I must admit that I would not call it a wholly perfect movie.

The Academy Award-winning South Korean filmmaker's follow-up to his Best Picture Oscar winner, 2019’s Parasite, touches on many interesting topics, ranging from the socioeconomic to the philosophical. As much as I admire its approach to the former, I would have loved to see it go a bit deeper into the latter, especially in regards to one particular theme that I found remarkably fascinating but largely underdeveloped in Mickey 17. Allow me to explain…

I Wanted A Deeper Exploration Of Its "Dead Forever" Theme

The main focus of Mickey 17 is Robert Pattinson’s title character (whom the actor adopted a Steve-O-esque voice to play), whose role as an “expendable” requires him to undergo grueling tasks that often prove fatal, but on the promise that he will be “reprinted” in a new body with the same memories each time. Things get tricky when he is assumed to be dead and returns to find a concurrent duplicate of himself, which is illegal, meaning that one of them has to die. However, neither Mickey 17 nor Mickey 18 wants to be the one to ensure there will be a single Mickey because they both fear the finality of death.

Now, that really had my attention: a man who has been resurrected from the dead on multiple occasions and now, for the first time, is forced to confront a permanent fate. A concept like this raises so much creative potential that could have been explored more frequently, perhaps by showing the Mickeys amicably discussing their concerns, but it is only acknowledged a couple of other times, most substantially when Mickey 18 admits he is afraid of death before sacrificing himself to kill Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo). By the end, the film’s exploration of death in a time when it can be avoided feels like a bit of an afterthought. Then again, there must not have been enough time to dedicate to that topic with so many other ideas competing for screen time. On that note...

I Think Mickey 17 Struggles To Balance Its Many Ideas

Any fan of Bong Joon Ho’s movies knows that the filmmaker loves to incorporate a deeper message hidden beneath the story, which he has demonstrated masterfully in titles like 2014’s Snowpiercer, which is a classist allegory disguised as an action-packed post-apocalyptic thriller. However, with Mickey 17, the filmmaker goes for a more overt satirical approach to a wide variety of themes, including religious fanaticism, xenophobia, fascism, drug trafficking, the moral complexities of cloning, and probably a few more that I might not have even caught on my own.

I absolutely applaud Bong for crafting such a bizarre and hilarious film that attempts to attack so many frighteningly relevant issues. Yet, I also believe that the film could have been even more powerful with a more central focus on one topic, much like the filmmaker’s previous satirical outings. Bong told Stephen Colbert on The Late Show that he believes Mickey 17 is a film about the human condition, and I certainly see where he was coming from, but I also cannot help but feel that said theme gets buried like Mickey clone.

On top of its struggle to balance so many topics at once, I also think Mickey 17 has a few characters who get the short end of the stick. For instance, I agree with Alexandra Ramos that Steven Yeun’s Timo deserved a larger role, and I also believe that Kai Katz (Anamaria Vartolomei), who has a crush on Mickey, is criminally underused. Honestly, though, I think all of these issues are still barely a detriment to what I predict will be regarded as a beloved sci-fi movie classic one day.

Movie-goers will remember that last March was a major haven for franchise titles. Denis Villeneuve's Dune: Part Two made a huge splash when it dropped in theaters the first weekend of the month, and it was followed by Mike Mitchell's Kung Fu Panda 4, Gil Kenan's Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, and Adam Wingard's Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. Twelve months later, March 2025 has a much different profile (a.k.a. it's completely lacking in sequels), and kicking things off is Mickey 17 – Bong Joon Ho's anticipated follow-up to the Best Picture-winning Parasite.

So how did things pan out? In short: not quite as hoped given the sci-fi adventure's sizable budget. Check out the full Top 10 from this past weekend in the chart below and join me after for analysis.

Mickey 17 Has The Third Best Opening Weekend Of 2025

Making a film that wins Best Picture earns a filmmaker a whole lot of industry clout when it comes to making their next project, and in the case of Bong Joon Ho, he swung big. Based on the book Mickey 7 by author Edward Ashton, Mickey 17 is a sci-fi spectacle with cloning, interstellar travel, and giant, bug-like aliens, and Warner Bros. ponied up a reported $118 million to make it (per Variety).

Unfortunately, after the movie's opening weekend, it looks as though it may take a minute for ticket sales to make up for that investment.

According to early box office results reported by The Numbers, Mickey 17 earned $19.1 million during its first three days in theaters domestically. In the context of 2025, that's not too shabby, as it's actually the third biggest debut for a film this year (following the $99.8 million made by Julius Onah's Captain America: Brave New World and the $36 million made by Peter Hastings' Dog Man), but it's surely not the kind of splash that the studio was hoping for.

Probably not helping circumstances much is the opening weekend buzz. I personally enjoyed Mickey 17 quite a bit, as explained in my spoiler-free, four-star CinemaBlend review, but I'll add that it's a flawed movie, and there are a number of critics who viewed those flaws in a harsher light than I did. One wonders if the film may have made a bigger impact at the box office had the early response to it been more effusive, particularly in the wake of the Academy Awards (more on that in a bit).

To be fair, it would have been a ridiculous turn of events had Mickey 17 made $50 million-plus in its first three days of domestic release. Parasite, Bong Joon Ho's biggest box office success to date, only made $53.9 million during its entire domestic run; similarly, Robert Pattinson's most successful movies not counting The Batman or the Twilight series are Christopher Nolan's Tenet ($59.5 million domestically) and Francis Lawrence's Water For Elephants ($58.7 million).

With what is expected to be the biggest movie of March 2025 still a few weeks away (Marc Webb's Snow White), it will be interesting to watch and see what kind of legs Mickey 17 is able to develop. It's made $53.3 million so far worldwide, and it will be interesting to see how high that number jumps come this time next week.

Anora Gets A Box Office Bump As Best Picture Win Results In A Theatrical Release Expansion

Initially released last October, Sean Baker's Anora saw its theater count peak in November when it played in 1,500 theaters... but obviously that was long before it became known as "the Academy Award winner for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Editing. The film has never had more heat than it does now, so Neon did the smart thing and significantly expanded its number of screens this past Friday.

Playing in 1,938 theaters in the United States and Canada this weekend, Anora jumped up the box office charts and into the Top 10 for the first time since mid-November 2024. The movie made an additional $1.9 million, bringing its domestic earnings to date up to $18.4 million. Combined with what the film has made overseas, it has now earned $46.2 million worldwide, which makes it the fourth biggest box office success for Neon following Bong Joon Ho's Parasite ($253.8 million), Osgood Perkins' Longlegs ($125.3 million), and Craig Gillespie's I, Tonya ($53.8 million).

The fact that Anora is currently available for rental or purchase from all major digital retailers is likely a main cause of the film's Oscar bump not being more substantial, but the fact that it still managed to spur interest on the big screen is a nice development to see.

Looking ahead, it's very likely that we will end up seeing a significant shakeup in the Top 10 next Sunday. Why? Because there is a big crop of wide releases aiming for different movie-goer demographics. Want to see a slick new spy thriller? Steven Soderberg's Black Bag has you covered. In the mood for some gnarly, R-rated action? Robert Olsen and Dan Berk's Novocaine should pique your interest. Want to have some laughs with cartoon fun? Peter Browngardt's The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie should scratch that itch. Perhaps you want some indie horror? Mark Anthony Green's Opus will be playing on the big screen with your interests in mind.

As always, I'll be back here on CinemaBlend next Sunday to recap how everything works out at the box office, so be sure to head back to the site then to read all about it. Meanwhile, you can check out our 2025 Movie Release Calendar to plan all of your own cinematic adventures in the coming months.

While Robert Pattinson has had a long and varied career in Hollywood so far, he will likely always be known first and foremost for his work on the Twilight movies. It seems that’s even the case for Bong Joon-ho, who directs Pattinson in the new film Mickey 17. One can imagine that the director had many questions for the actor before casting him, but apparently one of the most important was, just what is his real skin tone?

In a new video for GQ, Bong Joon-ho and Robert Pattinson hilariously discussed the proper pronunciation of the word “magenta,” but also talked about the actor’s pale Twilight look. It seems Bong was curious whether Pattinson was truly so pale. Check out the clip below.

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Robert Pattinson’s inability to pronounce “magenta” notwithstanding, this is actually a really interesting conversation because it shows the level of detail that Bong Joon-ho considers when casting his movies. He appears to be legitimately interested in Pattinson’s skin tone and the way it changed drastically between two movies. He said…

Obviously, when filming the Twilight movie, they went with the fairly traditional pale vampire look (with the occasional sparkly skin). But that doesn’t mean the look was entirely done with makeup or color correction. Maybe part of the reason Pattinson joined the Twilight cast was because his skin was already so pale. It’s possible that his skin tone was more unnatural in other films.

It’s not just a semantic question. An actor's skin tone when combined with how a director plans to shoot a movie is going to impact things like lighting and makeup decisions. Maybe getting an actor with a particular skin tone is key to casting the role in the first place. Even if not, it potentially impacts other elements of the filmmaking.

It seems Bong Joon-ho wasn’t entirely sure what Robert Pattinson’s skin tone was until the first time the two met to discuss the film. The director said…

As somebody who has seen Mickey 17, I can’t say I was particularly focused on Robert Pattinson’s skin tone. Instead, it was Pattinson's great performance in a very good sci-fi movie that I appreciated, and others almost certainly will as well.

Writer/director Bong Joon Ho has been recognized for years as one of modern cinema’s most talented filmmakers, but there is also no denying that his latest movie arrives with enhanced expectations. He has earned acclaim for a quarter century at this point, but his last feature had the distinction of winning four Academy Awards – including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay. The brilliant success of Parasite was always going to set an exceptionally high bar for Bong’s follow-up, and while Mickey 17doesn’t quite clear that extreme standard, it is still a sharp, funny, and smart satire that only his sensibilities could make.

Some of the bigger, goofier swings don’t quite connect as desired, and structural issues end up having a negative impact on the pacing of the story, but the film succeeds with a goofy atmosphere, strong themes, and a game cast – led by Robert Pattinson in a terrific dual performance.

Based on the novel Mickey7 by Edward Ashton, the movie’s eponymous protagonist is Mickey Barnes (Pattinson) – a loser living in the not too distant future who finds himself in a tight spot. An attempt at starting a macaron bakery with his shifty friend Timo (Steven Yeun) results in him owing a lot of money to some extremely dangerous people, and the only option he sees to try and stay alive is to get off the planet. Learning of a mission being launched by a failed politician named Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo) and his wife Ylfa (Toni Collette) to colonize an icy, distant planet called Niflheim, Mickey makes a deal to join the trip by becoming an expendable… but he doesn’t actually know what he is signing up for.

As it turns out, being an expendable means that his consciousness is uploaded into a computer and he is repeatedly used as a lab rat for dangerous scientific experiments. He is exposed to space radiation, infected with diseases, sent on deadly missions and more, and when he dies, his body is disposed of and a new Mickey is printed out. The lone bright spot in his miserable existence is his gifted and aggressive girlfriend Nasha (Naomi Ackie), but things go from bad to worse when the seventeenth Mickey miraculously survives one of his horrible adventures and returns to his quarters to find that an eighteenth Mickey was printed while he was gone and presumed dead.

Mickey 17 has some standout structural problems that make it hard to get into initially.

The most frustrating aspect of Mickey 17 is the decision to employ a non-linear narrative that stymies its growth. The film begins with the titular incarnation of Mickey ready to once again face death as he has fallen into an underground tunnel on the Niflheim surface and is seemingly about to be eaten by a swarm of giant, furry bugs referred to as Creepers, and then a voice-over guided rewind takes the story back to the beginning to explain the circumstances. Instead of naturally playing out, the first act registers more as an exposition dump, and one is left waiting for the movie to catch up with itself. It’s never boring – as it’s consistently funny, you’re invited to learn about a strange future with wild new technologies, and it clearly establishes the stakes – but it’s also never as compelling as it should be because of an imbalance between telling and showing.

This issue persists after we finally catch up with Mickey and see him survive his encounter with the Creepers and make his way back to the human colony. When Mickey 17 discovers that Mickey 18 has been printed, it initiates another flashback sequence that explains why duplicates are a serious problem and that the punishment is the execution of both/all versions. Again, it’s never not entertaining, as it offers a taste of what registers as a cool bit of futuristic true crime, but it also considerably hurts the movie’s pacing.

Once the story really gets going, Mickey 17 is a delight.

Mickey 17 creates its own considerable hump to climb over, but once it gets moving, it’s delightful. Mickey 17 and Mickey 18 have divergent personalities (the former nebbish and timid, the latter angry and aggressive) that add an extra spice to their pains to not be exposed as duplicates, but their efforts ultimately find them embroiled in what feels like Bong Joon Ho’s Starship Troopers. Kenneth Marshall’s despotic ideology, zealotry, and media obsession sees him view the Creepers as disgusting lower lifeforms that must be exterminated if the humans are going to properly colonize Niflheim, but the Mickeys and Nasha come to understand a vital truth about the alien species, and they fight to make that truth heard.

The satire is far from subtle – but let’s not forget that this is coming from the same filmmaker that brought us the brilliant Snowpiercer. Mark Ruffalo steps on the gas a touch too hard, but Toni Collette nails it (espousing the wonder of sauce as the pinnacle of civilization), and they are also the tone setters for the movie’s purposeful cold and weird examination of class warfare, colonization, and modern fascism opposite the proletariat protagonists. It’s macabre, goofy, and has something to say.

Bong Joon Ho has created another weird and beautiful sci-fi world.

The film is clunky when it comes to introducing audiences to its world, but the rendering of the world itself is remarkable. Tremendous production and costume design aesthetically contrast the lives of the rich and powerful compared to the grunts of the Niflheim colony, and the technological visions are wonderful and odd – from the sleek printer that creates new Mickeys (the little stutters in the process are a particularly funny touch) to the hard drives on which an expendables consciousness is stored (a literal brick). The dual performance is executed flawlessly, with proper credit due to Robert Pattinson for a pair of dynamic turns as Mickey 17 and Mickey 18, and the creature design of the Creepers finds an ideal middle ground between horrible and adorable.

Because of its structural issues, Mickey 17 may be a movie that some find it hard to get into, but it’s also the kind of movie that will age well thanks to its immense personality, the standout style of Bong Joon Ho, and its timely satire. It’s definitely not on the same level of excellence as Parasite, but it’s still excellent in its own way.

Pretty much since Bong Joon-ho won three Academy Awards in 2020 for Parasite (including Best Picture), movie lovers have been excited to see what he does next. At long last, his next project is hitting the 2025 movie calendar soon. Mickey 17 is an adaptation of the book Mickey7 by Edward Ashton and stars Robert Pattinson as the titular expendable. The sci-fi dark comedy has screened for critics, and first reactions are hitting social media. Let’s see what people think.

Before we get to the critics, though, for those unfamiliar with the source material, Mickey Barnes (Robert Pattinson) is a disposable clone worker living on the human colony Niflheim. As an “expendable,” he takes on lethal jobs, with his body being regenerated after each death. Things go awry when Mickey 17 is wrongly presumed dead and Mickey 18 is also created. Emily Murray of GamesRadar says the film feels especially relevant in current times, writing on X (Twitter):

Co-starring with Robert Pattinson are Naomi Ackie, Steven Yeun, Toni Collette and Mark Ruffalo in the role of a nasty dictator. The Nerds of Color praises all of the performances in Bong Joon-Ho’s Mickey 17, especially that of Pattinson in the dual role. They write on X:

Liam Crowley of ScreenRant agrees that Mark Ruffalo shines in this cautionary tale. Mickey 17 has even changed the way this critic thinks about being a human. The critic writes:

Eli Johnson, senior writer at POC Culture, writes via Bluesky that the director — who also wrote the screenplay — provides a brilliant commentary that’s bolstered by its lead’s performance. Johnson says:

John Nguyen of Nerd Reactor agrees Robert Pattinson is more than capable of pulling off both Mickey clones, but this critic thinks Bong Joon-ho might have missed an opportunity to expand the story toward the end. Nguyen writes:

Germain Lussier of Gizmodo also had a minor issue with Mickey 17, writing that the political movements feel too real to be fun:

Matt Maytum of TotalFilm has no such issues, thinking that the director is able to strike the right chord between its satirical message and its eccentricities. In Maytum’s words:

BJ Colangelo of Slashfilm is on board with much of the praise the film is receiving in the first social media reactions. The critic calls it “uncomfortably funny” and poignant, saying it’s Bong Joon-ho’s best English-language film to date:

CinemaBlend’s Eric Eisenberg called Mickey 17 “wacky sci-fi fun” after seeing footage at CinemaCon, so that on top of these reactions should inspire optimism in anyone who’s read the book or simply saw Parasite and is looking forward to the director’s next movie. Unfortunately the wait to see it isn’t quite over yet. Mickey 17 is set to hit theaters on Friday, March 7.

Every top-ranked movie made by Bong Joon-Ho has blown away audiences and critics due to the filmmaker’s visionary sense of style and knack for blending a variety of genres. After experiencing multiple release delays due to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA Strike, audiences will finally see Joon-Ho’s latest masterpiece Mickey 17 about an “expendable” who dies and gets revived after every space mission only to be cloned when he’s presumed missing or dead. If you want to know just how much of a detailed filmmaker the South Korean native is, I just found out how Boong films his movies thanks to his star, Robert Pattinson, and the whole process sounds so wild.

Based on what I’m seeing in the first Mickey 17 trailer, it looks like Bong Joon-Ho created a whole new futuristic world that allows the audience to travel with Robert Pattinson’s darkly comic hero to space and the ice planet of Niflheim. It’s clear the Oscar-winning filmmaker pays close attention to detail to transport audiences to a visually stunning place that stays with them. At Seoul’s Yongsan CGV cinema (via Deadline), I just found out because of Pattinson how exactly his Mickey 17 director films his movies with the process completely mind-blowing:

That truly is an excellent quality for a filmmaker to be able to visualize an entire movie in your head before shooting starts. Compared to filming an entire scene and then having to do it all over again if the director isn’t satisfied, Bong Joon-Ho prefers to film small segments at a time. The Mother director says the process of shooting and editing films in real-time is actually very common in Korea.

Bong Joon-Ho used the same simultaneous filming-editing method for Snowpiercer with a cool BTS fact of the action-thriller being that the team set up an editing station below the massive set. Small pieces of each scene would be shot only to be edited shortly after to avoid filming material that wouldn’t be used. This means that every precise moment you see in Bong's movies is precise and there for a reason.

There are a bunch of other reasons why Bong Joon-Ho is an exemplary filmmaker many should look up to. A BTS Parasite fact you may not have known about is the Palme d'Or winner had 480 “invisible” special effects where the first floor and the front yard of the Park family’s luxurious house were filmed on an empty outdoor lot with a green screen placed on top to add the second floor. Bong knew that if the house didn’t look perfect, the story wouldn’t work.

Other than Bong Joon-Ho's visual style, the high-grossing director also does a great job introducing social commentary into his movies without being preachy whether it's class inequality in Parasite or capitalism in Okja. With so many genres blended into one film, you never know where the story is going to go which can easily pique an audience’s interest.

Thanks to Robert Pattinson, now I know that Bong Joon-Ho shoots a few lines at a time only for that scene to be edited simultaneously. It’s a cool, innovative process you'd wish many other directors could incorporate in their movies to capture the raw emotion of each performance. As Bong continues to push the boundaries of traditional filmmaking, it’s no wonder he’s so widely received on a global scale. The 2025 movie release of Mickey 17 will make its way into theaters on March 7th.

Had everything gone as originally planned, audiences everywhere would be seeing director Bong Joon-ho's Mickey 17 right now. When the film dropped its first teaser all the way back in December 2022, it was announced that it would be arriving in theaters on March 29, 2024 – and if you check your calendar, you'll note that date was a little less than two weeks ago. 

The reason why we haven't seen Mickey 17 yet is because Warner Bros. made the call back in February to push the release date until 2025... and while that was a tough pill to swallow at the time, we're now even more frustrated about the wait following the debut of a brand new and fantastic preview of the movie at CinemaCon 2024.

The annual convention for theaters owners is being held in Las Vegas this week, and this afternoon, Warner Bros. hosted a presentation showcasing their exciting lineup of new films (including dropping the first trailer for Joker: Folie à Deux). As cool as it was to see footage from upcoming 2024 movies, however, it was the fresh look at the studio's first release of 2025 that was the highlight of the showcase. Based on the novel Mickey7 by Ashton Edward, Mickey 17 stars Robert Pattinson, Mark Ruffalo, Toni Collette, Naomi Ackie, and Steven Yeun, and it looks like an excellent mix of cool, dark, and hilarious. 

The footage didn't take long to establish its off-beat tone. It began with a sequence featuring Robert Pattinson's Mickey out in space on the side of a shuttle. After complaining over a radio that he is feeling a bit dizzy, a piece of debris comes rocketing out of nowhere and rips Mickey's arm straight from his body, and the appendage goes tumbling. Rather than experiencing any kind of panic, a voice exclaims, "Wow, did you see that?" Cue Dean Martin and Nelson Riddle's "Ain't That A Kick In The Head" – instantly establishing that audiences should prepare for a wacky cinematic experience.

Then taking a step back in the narrative, the Mickey 17 CinemaCon footage revealed that the titular Mickey is a simple man who, without doing the proper research, signs up for a program as an Expendable. It's a gig that sees his body and mind scanned for replication so that he can take on potentially fatal missions. If he dies, his corpse is thrown into a lava pit and a human printing is generated to continue his existence. (In one particular funny moment, an attendant notices that Mickey is actually alive as his body is about to be destroyed, but Mickey tells him "it's fine" to just go ahead with the burning.)

It seems to be a terrible existence full of pain and horror, with incidents like falling through an ice sheet on an alien planet and encountering some giant, violent extraterrestrials... but then things actually manage to get even worse. When he drops into his bed one night, he is utterly shocked to discover that a new human printing is already occupying the mattress. Mickey 17 (a.k.a. the seventeenth version of the original Mickey) meets Mickey 18, and they both recognize their encounter as serious trouble. 

Playing a character Bong Joon-ho describes as a "bad guy" and a "very funny dictator," Mark Ruffalo appears declaring that in the case of Multiples, all individuals must be destroyed – setting up the Mickeys to decide which of them should die or figure out how they can survive together.

In addition to comedy being a mostly fresh space for Robert Pattinson, Mickey 17 sees him take on the challenge of playing two distinct versions of the same person. Describing the film's eponymous character, Pattinson explained that because Mickey 17 has died so many times, he has been left with the lowest expectations for life... and yet the world keeps pushing those expectations down further. He's reached such a low point that even though his job is basically being tortured everyday, he is at least somewhat satisfied because he is part of a team.

Mickey 18, on the other hand, is a different story. Bong Joon-ho noted that Pattinson brought a lot personally to the character, and the actor explained that the eighteenth clone is a version of Mickey who suffers from a bit of frontal lobe damage. As a result, he is lacking in impulse control and also has an unrestricted libido.

In addition to the characters mentioned, Toni Collette plays the wife of Mark Ruffalo's dictator, Naomi Ackie stars as Mickey's girlfriend, and Steven Yeun is "another crazy guy" in the movie (per Bong Joon-ho) and Mickey's "strange buddy."

Given that this is the director's first film since the Best Picture-winning Parasite from 2019, there are a whole lot of expectations set up for Mickey 17, but the CinemaCon footage certainly suggests that he has another amazing winner in the works. It features a wholly different story, fresh themes, and sci-fi visuals compared to his last film, but the material had the crowd gathered in The Colosseum Theater at Caesars Palace delighted and laughing out loud.

It's a bummer that we're going to have to wait a while to actually see the film, but this early preview suggests that movie-goers have something special to anticipate. Mickey 17 will be in theaters everywhere on January 31, 2025 – so stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for more of our coverage of the film, and be sure to keep coming back to the site this week as we get more exciting updates about the cinematic landscape as we continue our on-the-ground coverage of CinemaCon 2024.

Today offers some bad news and good news for Robert Pattinson fans. The bad news is that it looks like it is going to be a minute before we next get to see the actor on the big screen, as the film he has been most recently working on has just been given a March 2024 release date. The good news is that said film is Mickey 17, writer/director Bong Joon-ho's upcoming follow-up to the Oscar-winning Parasite, and Warner Bros. has revealed the first look at the movie for audiences to enjoy.

In announcing that Mickey 17 will be hitting theaters on March 29, 2024, Warner Bros. has released a special teaser for the movie that should inspire a lot of questions (and perhaps a touch of vertigo). You can watch the spinning preview for the film below, which puts Robert Pattinson front and center:

Mickey 17 is based on the novel Mickey7 by Edward Ashton, and the titular character is a "disposable employee" who is utilized in the colonization of a new planet. When he dies, his body is regenerated with most of his own memories – but issues arise when a Mickey who is presumed lost and dead returns and finds that a new Mickey has been made to replace him. In addition to featuring Robert Pattinson in the lead role, the outstanding ensemble cast in the 2024 movie also includes Steven Yeun, Naomi Ackie, Toni Collette, and Mark Ruffalo.

Production on Mickey 17 began all the way back in August, but the movie is still filming, and it appears as though the filmmakers will be using all of 2023 for post-production. That schedule alone tells us that what's being cooked up here is rather massive in scale, so cinephiles should perhaps start bracing themselves for the experience now.

With its release date, Mickey 17 will have to be pretty exciting, as it is now set to be released during a month that already has a number of planted flags from high-profile titles. It's presently set to hit theaters the same day as the highly anticipated Spider-Man: Beyond The Spider-Verse (the follow up to 2023's Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse), and it will be coming out within a few weeks of A Quiet Place: Day One, Kung Fu Panda 4, Godzilla vs. Kong 2, and Disney's live-action remake of Snow White.

We first learned that Bong Joon-ho was developing the adaptation of Mickey7 with Robert Pattinson back in January, and it's an exciting return to science-fiction for the writer/director, who previously earned acclaim for his 2013 film Snowpiercer. Expectations for his latest work are going to be through the roof thanks to Parasite's Best Picture win at the Oscars, but his track record suggests that he has the skills to meet the challenge.

While we patiently wait for Mickey 17, you can get a look at what's ahead cinematically in the next year with our 2023 Movie Release Calendar, and if you're in need of a Robert Pattinson fix, you can now watch The Batman streaming if you have an HBO Max subscription.

Ever since Bong Joon-Ho dazzled us all with the 2020 Best Picture winner Parasite, movie fans have been giddy to see what the director is up to next. The South Korean filmmaker is currently assembling a cast for his next movie starring Robert Pattinson. In an exciting update regarding the untitled science fiction project, a Walking Dead fan-favorite has joined the cast. 

Steven Yeun has reportedly signed on for Bong Joon-Ho’s Parasite follow-up alongside Mark Ruffalo, Toni Collette and Naomi Ackie, per Variety. Yeun memorably played Glenn in The Walking Dead from 2010 to 2016, but the South Korean-born actor has also starred in numerous movies lately – including the critically-acclaimed 2020 film Minari and Jordan Peele’s upcoming horror movie Nope. Yeun previously worked with Bong before on 2017’s Okja. 

While the upcoming movie has yet to receive a title, it is based on Edward Ashton’s 2022 novel, Mickey7. The novel follows an expendable, disposable employee on a human expedition to colonize an ice world called Niflheim. “Mickey7” is the name of the sixth cloned iteration of Mickey, who has died and been regenerated as a clone with his memories intact. When Mickey7 goes missing and is presumed dead on a scouting mission, Mickey8 is created, but he refuses to let his clone take his place. 

Robert Pattinson has been tapped to play Mickey7 since early this year, and The Batman actor was apparently Bong Joon-Ho’s first choice. The book has been described as The Martian meets Dark Matter, and it will be the filmmaker’s first movie set in space, though he is well known for making thoughtful science fiction films in the past (with his resume including films such as the previously mentioned Okja and Snowpiercer).

After Steven Yeun wrapped six years on The Walking Dead and it became his breakout role, the actor has shared before that he purposefully turned down parts that came to him that felt too much like his zombie-killing character. One of the projects he did take on just following leaving the AMC horror series was Bong Joon-Ho's Okja. 

The Netflix movie helped Yeun pave a path to more great work in movies, mostly of the indie nature such as Sorry To Bother You, South Korean drama Burning, and Minari. He followed a similar path to his new co-star Robert Pattinson, who was for many years making arthouse films following his work on Twilight. That changed more recently when Pattinson starred in The Batman. 

With Steven Yeun part of his latest project, Bong Joon-Ho continues to score some solid talent for his next movie. The filmmaker is also developing an HBO series based on Parasite alongside Adam McKay. While we wait for the Mickey7 adaptation, stream these movies you’ll like if Parasite was a favorite. 

It is hard to believe it has been nearly a decade since Bong Joon-ho gave the world one of the most inventive, terrifying, and action-packed dystopian thrillers in 2014’s Snowpiercer. The gripping sci-fi movie about what is left of humanity living on a circumnavigational train that is bitterly divided by classes checked all the boxes for a great post-apocalyptic film upon release, and has only continued to grow in popularity, especially with a TV adaptation of its own.

As part of our ongoing partnership with Plex, where you can watch Snowpiercer for free, we have gone through and found some of the most exciting behind-the-scenes facts from the making of this modern masterpiece. It’s a bumpy ride, so you might want to buckle up.

Bong Joon-ho Wanted To Make Snowpiercer After Discovering And Reading The Le Transperceneige Graphic Novel 

Years before Bong Joon-ho gave Snowpiercer to the world, the project started out as a French graphic novel called Le Transperceneige, which the eventual Oscar winner found in a Seoul comic book shop while taking a break from filming The Host. According to a profile on the movie and its director in the LA Review of Books, Bong noticed the book while strolling his regular destination for comics and didn’t stop reading the story about a train containing what was left of humanity until it was finished. Some time later, the filmmaker worked with Park Chan-wook to secure the graphic film rights and began the slow process of turning it into one of the most inventive thrillers of the past decade

A Massive Set Was Constructed On A Gimbal System To Simulate The Movement Of A Train

With Snowpiercer being set on a train speeding along a track across the surface of a frozen Earth, the production team needed to come up with a way to make it feel like the cast was jostling about. In a behind-the-scenes interview with FandangoMovies, Chris Evans, who played the film’s protagonist, Curtis, explained that the production crew built a massive train with multiple cars that was then put on a gimbal that would move from side to side and backwards and forwards to recreate that sensation. Describing the set as cramped, hot, and sweaty, Evans explained that it felt like what the conditions would have been like in the environment of the movie.

Tilda Swinton's Character Was Originally Written As A 'Mild-Mannered Man In A Suit’

It is hard picturing anyone but Tilda Swinton playing Minister Mason, the train’s vicious second in command in Snowpiercer, but according to Swinton, the role was originally written as a “mild-mannered man in a suit” when Bong Joon-ho first started working on the movie. When speaking with Deadline following the film’s release, Tilda Swinton had this to say about how she came to play the now-iconic character:

And remarkably enough, Swinton and Bong didn’t rewrite anything in the script and kept the character’s gender ambiguous throughout the movie. 

Bong Joon-ho And Snowpiercer’s Costume Designer Visited Tilda Swinton’s With An Assortment Of Clothes And Accessories To Craft Her Look

When coming up with Minister Mason’s look, which can be seen prominently in Snowpiercer, director Bong Joon-ho and costume designer Catherine George traveled to Tilda Swinton’s home before the start of production to play dress up with the Academy Award-winning actress. In 2014, Swinton told Collider that after she picked up the pair from the airport she brought them to her house and put a pie in the oven before telling them they all had 20 minutes to come up with something while it cooked. This process included taking bits of children’s costumes, ribbons and fake medals they made as well as some glasses to come up with a definitive look for the character. And amazingly enough, they were finished before it was time to sit down and eat pie.

Chris Evans Would Hang Out On The Snowpiercer Set To ‘Fully Grasp’ His Character

In Snowpiercer, Chris Evans plays a character who had spent 18 years of his life living the cramped and dingy quarters of the tail section of a train, and so the actor came up with a simple yet effective way to get into character. When speaking with Collider in 2014, Evans recalled asking if he could go down to the set a few days one week and spend a couple of hours by himself, really studying the train and all its hidden areas. He wanted to better grasp what it would be like to live the better part of two decades in that environment while also making himself comfortable in that environment. 

Bong Joon-ho Had To Find Ways To Hide Chris Evans’ Muscles While Shooting Snowpiercer

Even though Chris Evans played a revolutionary-type character who was constantly on the verge of starvation in Snowpiercer, the actor was far from being malnourished and was actually in impressive shape considering he was still Captain America at the time. This presented some issues for director Bong Joon-ho, who opened up about the process in a 2014 Reddit AMA.

Production on Snowpiercer took place in early to mid 2012, which was right around the time Evans would need to start preparing for Captain America: The Winter Soldier, aka one of the best Marvel movies, and so trimming a ton of muscle wasn’t really something that could be done, so working with the costume department was the best bet.

The Action In Snowpiercer Intentionally Moves From Left To Right

Since everything but the final moments of Snowpiercer takes place on a train, Bong Joon-ho had to find ways to make the movie feel like it was constantly in motion. One way was the aforementioned gimbal system, but the director and his director of photography came up with a principle that would ensure that forward momentum. When speaking with Vulture, Bong revealed that they shot the movie so that the left side of the frame would always be towards the tail of the train and the right side of the frame would always be towards the engine at the front. This shooting principle also helped the audience know which way the action was going at any given time.

The Gelatinous Protein Blocks Were Actually Made Of Sugar And Seaweed

The gelatinous protein blocks the lower-class passengers were forced to eat in Snowpiercer were supposed to be made up of crushed-up insects. And while the actual bars used on set didn’t consist of roaches that had been cannibalizing one another for two decades, they weren’t all that appetizing for the actors. In a 2014 Reddit AMA, Bong Joon-ho revealed that in order to get the jelly-like texture needed, the production team used a combination of sugar and seaweed. He added by saying the blocks Chris Evans, Octavia Spencer, and Tilda Swinton ate were edible but tasted terrible.

Snowpiercer Was Being Edited As It Was Being Filmed

When filming Snowpiercer, Bong Jong-ho didn’t waste any time starting the post-production work and would immediately send the footage to editors Steve M. Choe and Changju Kim each day. But he didn’t have to send the footage too far because the team set up a makeshift editing station below the massive set on location. In 2014, Ed Harris, who is featured as the train’s creator and caretaker Willford, told Collider that unlike most productions where multiple versions of a scene are shot, Bong would film small pieces of each scene and then have it edited shortly thereafter.

The Weinstein Company Ordered A Special Edit Of Snowpiercer For American Audiences

Snowpiercer premiered in Seoul, South Korea in July 2013, but American audiences wouldn’t get to see Bong Joon-ho’s dystopian epic until the following summer. One of the reasons for this delay was The Weinstein Company’s desire to make a shorter cut of the film that would attempt to increase the action and pacing by removing 25 minutes of footage, with a large portion of that being dialogue. 

When speaking about the drama in a Vulture interview years later, Bong explained that former TWC chief Harvey Weinstein went as far as to screen an alternate cut of the film, which received poor scores from a test audience. And in response, he wanted to cut more of the film’s runtime. Luckily, Bong had a clause in his contract that allowed him to test-screen his original cut, which was better received by test audiences and eventually became the version released.

If you want to watch Snowpiercer after reading all these behind-the-scenes facts, you can do so on Plex where it is streaming for free. And while we don’t yet know when Bong Joon-ho’s next project will be released, there are still plenty of 2022 new movies on the horizon.

There’s been nothing but radio silence since Parasite director Bong Joon-ho swept the Oscars in 2020. Moviegoers have been waiting to hear what his next project would be. After no developments for months, Bong has finally found his Parasite follow-up. Not only will the Oscar winner make his triumphant return, but The Batman’s Robert Pattinson might be along for the ride.

Deadline reported the Parasite director will write, produce, and direct a film based on the upcoming novel Mickey7 by renowned sci-fi author Edward Ashton. Bong has been circling the sci-fi thriller since receiving the manuscript toward the end of 2021. The untitled film will be a co-production between his production outfit Offscreen, Kate Street Picture Company, and Plan B. Kate Street Picture and Plan B’s Dooho Choi will produce the sci-fi movie alongside Bong Joon-ho.

Robert Pattinson is the Oscar-winning director’s first choice for the lead. According to Deadline, The Batman star was one of the multiple A-list stars who allegedly met with Bong and executives to discuss the role. Everyone was reportedly impressed with Pattinson that they made him an offer before 2021 ended. The film might’ve found its lead.

The chance of the Snowpiercer director and the Twilight alum working together seems probable. Both men are currently under overall deals with Warner Bros. Bong Joon-ho is developing an HBO Max miniseries based on the Oscar-winning Parasite with Don’t Look Up director Adam McKay. Of course, Robert Pattinson will soon make his DC debut as the Dark Knight once The Batman arrives in theaters. As a result, the studio offered Pattinson a first-look deal as a sign of good measure. So all the stars are lining up to make this potential collaboration happen.

The source material Mickey7 will tell the story of a disposable employee leaving on the ice plant Niflheim. The character is repeatedly sent out on dangerous or suicidal missions. After experiencing six deaths, the regenerated explorer starts to question his fate within the colony.

Teaming up with the Tenet star won’t be the first time the director has crossed paths with Hollywood’s A-list. His 2013 film Snowpiercer featured stars like Chris Evans and Octavia Spencer while 2017’s Okja starred Jake Gyllenhaal, Lily Collins, and Steven Yeun. Both films featured Oscar winner Tilda Swinton. Now, Robert Pattinson might be adding his name to this illustrious list.

Since winning the Best Director and Best Picture Oscars for the black comedy, Bong Joon-ho has been keeping a low profile. But movie audiences were anticipating his next film. Before this announcement, Bong had hinted at other projects he is working on. He mentioned working on two scripts – a Korean action-horror film and an English-language drama centered around events from 2016. So, the sci-fi thriller is one of the multiple projects the three-time Oscar winner has been brewing.

It is currently unknown when the film will start production. No other casting news or release date has been announced for the untitled film.

In early 2020, Parasite and its director, Bong Joon-ho, was all anyone could talk about. The 2019 psychological thriller and its director had won nearly 200 individual awards and became the first foreign-language film to take home the Oscar for Best Picture at the 92nd Academy Awards, cementing its legacy as an instant classic. The crowning achievement even led to talk of the movie becoming its very own TV series over at HBO.

Leading up to and following the Oscars in February 2020 there was a lot of buzz surrounding the project, which was to be executive produced by Bong Joon-ho and Adam McKay. There was talk of the show’s length, how it would differ from the original Parasite, and even some of the actors who were being eyed for lead roles. But a year has passed since we last heard anything of consequence about the project and some of us are wondering what’s going on with the Parasite TV series at HBO.

The Parasite Original Series Was First Announced In January 2020

Between Parasite’s Best Foreign Language Film win at the 77th Golden Globes and the film’s domination at the Oscars a month later, the Korean thriller started to get even more attention. So much so that in January 2020, it was reported that Bong Joon-ho and Adam McKay were negotiating with HBO to create a limited series based on the movie.

According to Deadline, channels and streamers like HBO and Netflix found themselves in a race to secure the rights to the Parasite TV show but Bong Joon-ho and Adam McKay ultimately decided on HBO. This makes sense considering the premium outlet’s history of critically-acclaimed limited dramas like Band of Brothers, Big Little Lies, and Sharp Objects. It also doesn’t hurt that McKay, who has produced HBO hit series Eastbound and Down and Succession, has a first-look deal with HBO.

Bong Joon-ho Has Said The Series Will Explore Unused Ideas From Parasite

Around the time the Parasite series was announced, Bong Joon-ho sat down with Variety to explain his process and what he hoped to achieve with the limited series. Seeing the format as more of an extended film, as opposed to a traditional television series, Bong said his goal was to create a high quality expanded version of his 2019 thriller, adding:

When discussing the project with The Wrap in January 2020, Bong Joon-ho explained that the format would afford him the opportunity to create a six-hour-long film opposed to cramming and leaving stuff out of a traditional two-hour narrative.

Mark Ruffalo Was Reportedly Being Eyed For A Role In February 2020

Following the Oscars, the HBO adaptation continued to build momentum, reaching a boiling point in February 2020 when news began to circulate that Mark Ruffalo was reportedly being considered for one of the roles, presumably one of the leads. In February 2020, Collider reported that it had heard from multiple sources that Ruffalo was in early talks to take on an undisclosed role in the early stages of the show’s development but that nothing could be confirmed at that time.

Collider even went as far as to reach HBO for comment on the matter to which the premium channel responded by saying the show was in the early stages of development and any speculation on casting was “wildly premature.” The Mark Ruffalo casting would make sense considering the actor played the two twin leads in the network’s 2020 limited series I Know This Much Is True, not to mention his track record in dramatic roles outside of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Tilda Swinton Was Also Reportedly Attached To The Project In February 2020

Around that same time, Tilda Swinton, who not only appeared in the MCU as The Ancient One in Doctor Strange and then again in Avengers: Endgame (in which she appeared alongside Mark Ruffalo) but also previously gave scene-stealing performances in two of Bong Joon-ho’s previous efforts: Snowpiercer and Okja, was also being eyed for a role in the Parasite TV series.

According to The Illuminerdi, there were reports linking the Academy Award-winning actress to the series being spearheaded by the South Korean filmmaker. Other outlets, including NME picked up the story in the days following, but like in the case of Mark Ruffalo, there has been no confirmation on the casting of Tilda Swinton.

Following Parasite’s Oscar Win, Bong Joon-ho Stepped Out Of The Spotlight To Focus On Two Film Scripts

Since February 2020, there hasn’t been much of a whisper about the Parasite HBO series and that could be because Bong Joon-ho, having become exhausted from the campaign following the release of the film version and the awards circuit, decided to take some time out of the spotlight. Bong touched on this in a February 2021 conversation with Star Wars: The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson on The Director’s Cut podcast, stating:

Bong Joon-ho went on to explain that it was mentally comforting to realize that he could step away from the hustle and bustle of the world and focus on completing the two scripts, one of which he had been working on for the past three years.

Bong Joon-ho Has Since Completed One Of The Two Movie Scripts

At the start of their conversation, Bong Joon-ho revealed to Rian Johnson that he had finished one of the two different screenplays (one in English, the other in Korean) but writing two scripts simultaneously was no easy task, stating:

Bong Joon-ho did not reveal too much more about the project during his interview with Rian Johnson but the acclaimed director previously stated in a 2019 conversation with Variety that both projects were similar in size to Parasite and Mother, so don’t expect large-scale action sequences like in Snowpiercer or globe-trotting adventures like in Okja. During that conversation, Bong explained that the Korean film was set in Seoul and had “unique elements” of horror and action while the English film was based on a “true event” set in the U.K. and the U.S.

It remains to be seen just how far along Bong Joon-ho is with the Parasite TV series on HBO or when we’ll hear more details about its story, cast, and release date (hopefully it's not 2027 like Bong joked in a conversation with The Wrap), or even how these two mysterious film projects will affect it. And even though it has already been a year since we last heard anything about the limited series, it’s not like Bong is just sitting around shining his multiple Oscars, but instead doing what he does best: crafting unique, terrifying, and at times oddly humorous stories.

Even in a career full of highlights, notably including Memories of Murder, The Host (2007), Snowpiercer, and Okja, Parasite exceeded all expectations to become one of the triumphant movies in recent history — if not all-time. The winner of the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, Best Picture at the Oscars, and at the top of several critics "best of the year" lists, Parasite is an incredible achievement, to put it mildly, which firmly cemented Joon-ho's status as a prestige filmmaker on a world-scale. Now that Parasite continues finding its audience in homes everywhere, many folks will wonder how this movie got made, and what it took to make such a great, seminal work of art.

Certainly, Parasite isn't made overnight. It takes a lot of talented people, as well as a strong vision, to pull it off. If you loved this Oscar-winning film, here are some noteworthy behind-the-scenes facts about Parasite.

Parasite Was Originally Conceived As A Play

While Bong Joon-ho is an exceptionally visual filmmaker, storyboarding his films intensely before it comes time to shoot the picture, Parasite initially wasn't conceived as a movie, believe it or not. Surprisingly enough, the writer/director's original plans for the story were to turn it into a play, bouncing back and forth between the Kim apartment and the Parks household. The story came to mind in 2013, around the time Joon-ho finished Snowpiercer. He was encouraged by a theater actor friend to write up a play, which later inspired Joon-ho to reflect back on his time tutoring for the son of a wealthy family in Seoul in his early 20s before he came into his own as a filmmaker.

The director first considered turning this experience into a play production, as THR reported. Eventually, however, it became the catalyst for the newest film in his continuously-impressive filmography.

Bong Joon-ho Claims The Second Half Of Parasite Came ‘Like A Hurricane’

The writing process comes differently for everyone. Hell, it even comes differently for each individual project. Some movies are written like lightning, shooting out of the screenwriter's fingers as if the devil is after them. Other times, it takes years, even decades, for the movie to come alive on the page — and that's before it goes through extensive rewrites, new drafts, etc.

When it comes to screenwriter/director Bong Joon-ho putting his ideas for Parasite onto paper, the process came with great difficulty at first, as he was having trouble contextualizing the overarching story. But when the story's midway twist came to mind, Joon-ho told The Atlantic that the screenwriting process came "like a hurricane." Joon-ho also told Dazed Digital that four years to concoct Parasite's concept, but it took only four months to write-up alongside co-writer Han Jin-won.

The House Sauna Has Personal Significance To Bong Joon-ho

As noted before, Parasite is inspired by Bong Joon-ho's early experiences, particularly as a young, lower-class man who found himself in the midst of a wealthy family's luxurious lifestyle through his brief tenure as a tutor. And the sight of a house sauna holds personal significance to Joon-ho's early life. As he noted to Vanity Fair, seeing a house sauna for the first time in such a lavish home was a monumental moment, and it's something that he has since associated with enormous wealth. He made a point to include a sauna in the Park home to showcase just how wealthy this very rich family was.

Parasite Has 480 Visual Effects, But Most Of Them Are ‘Invisible’

Especially compared to Snowpiercer and Okja, Bong Joon-ho's previous two films, as well as 2007's The Host, Parasite doesn't look like an especially VFX-heavy movie. But looks can be deceiving. Indeed, while the movie is notably smaller-in-scale compared to the big budgets of his last two movies, Parasite contains nearly 480 visual effects shots — most of which, surprisingly enough, come from the luxurious house. As Vulture reported, the first floor and its private front yard were built on an empty outdoor lot, and they placed a green screen on top, which is where they inserted the second floor. The various other floors, meanwhile, were added separately.

According to Bong Joon-ho, if the structure of the house "isn't correct, the story doesn't work," so special effects wizardry was needed to realize it. But nearly all of these special effects are "invisible."

The Apartments Were Built In A Water Tank

A little more-than-midway through Parasite, the Kim family finds themselves at one of their most desperate moments when, after escaping the Parks family's notice upon their early return, they come back to their modest apartment and discover that the whole complex has been flooded. In order to realize this moment in the film, Bong Joon-ho and his team decided to build the apartments inside a giant water tank, thus making it easy for them to flood the whole neighborhood when it came time to do so in the film. The scene happened on the last day of shooting, according to Joon-ho, and they "poured in sewage water" to realize this devastating moment for the Kim family.

Though he described it as such, Bong Joon-ho wasn't being literal when he said "sewage water." He apparently used "mud face masks" instead. Still, talk about world-building!

The Movie’s Fixation On Rocks Came From Bong Joon-ho’s Father

"It's all so ... metaphorical!"

Certainly, rocks play a big role in Bong Joon-ho's Oscar-winning film, and the characters are even upfront about its symbolism. But what inspired the director to incorporate so many stones in the film in the first place? As it turns out, Parasite's fixation on rocks came from the director's own father's fascination with collecting these heavy formations. As Joon-ho noted in a Dazed Digital interview, while this rock-collecting hobby seemingly fell out-of-practice starting with his own generation, this tradition of finding, then collecting these stones stuck with the filmmaker. He felt that rocks carry "this uncanny sense of being able to transform into various things." He notes they can "at once" be "a weapon" and "a beautiful decoration." In that sense, Joon-ho notes that Parasite is, in many ways,"about transformation." Indeed, "so metaphorical!"

Mad Max: Fury Road Inspired Parasite In A Fun Way

It's hard to think of too many modern films more exhilarating than George Miller's extraordinary Mad Max: Fury Road. The exquisitely-crafted action movie spectacle is a sheer rush, never relenting or stopping itself in the midst of his hyper-active storytelling wizardry. It's a glorious cinematic achievement, inspiring many filmmakers to step up their game to try to produce something equally as thrilling. While it's hard to imagine too many other movies rising to Fury Road's action-packed level, it's easy to see how this blockbuster's constant adrenaline informed Parasite's exceptional pacing.

During Parasite's press rounds, Bong Joon-ho claimed Fury Road was "quite inspirational." He felt a huge emotional connection to it, and he was extremely inspired by how the background information appears naturally, the camera never stops moving, and the information is explained through action. He used this inspiration while making Parasite.

Moon-gwang's Peach Allergy Was Inspired by Bong Joon-ho’s Friend

One of Parasite's most darkly amusing moments is how the Kim family attempts to weaponize Moon-gwang's severe peach allergy to their fight-or-flight survival. It's a quirky-but-distinctive inclusion that makes you wonder where the heck Bong Joon-ho came up with the idea in the first place. As it turns out, Joon-ho's inspiration came from a college friend who was also allergic to peaches.

As Bong Joon-ho recounted, the future filmmaker and his friends thought the guy was joking about this allergy, so someone decided to throw a peach his way. But he wasn't kidding, it turns out, and "his entire body turned red." It was all "very shocking," and obviously, Joon-ho and his pals "felt very bad" about it. But, as Joon-ho was quick to admit, he wasn't the one who hurtled the fruit his way.

One Continuity Error Was Left In Parasite On Purpose By The Editor

Especially in a time where seemingly any pesky CinemaSins-esque personality waits to pick apart any conceivable loose/unknitted plot thread, glaring plot hole, or narrative inconsistency, you'd think that editors (and writers/directors/script supervisors, etc.) would do everything in their power to make their plots as air-tight as possible. But if you noticed one particular continuity error in Parasite, it wasn't a mistake. Or, at least, it wasn't left in the movie unintentionally.

As editor Yang Jin-mo noted in an interview, there's a moment where Ki-jung eats jerky, only to freeze when she realizes it's for the puppy. From there, we go to a wide shot of the family when you hear the doorbell. There's a small continuity error where she goes from eating it in her left hand to her right. According to Yang, this mistake wasn't left in accidentally. They left it in there for the fans to spot.

Even With Parasite’s Incredible Success, Bong Joon-ho Isn't Completely Happy With The Final Film

Sometimes, a filmmaker is their own worst critic. One would be extremely hard-pressed to call Parasite any sort of failure. It won the Palme d'Or at last year's Cannes Film Festival. It grossed $264.4 million at the box office. It was hailed by many movie-lovers, critics or otherwise, as the year's best film. And the Academy Awards recognized it as such when it became the first non-English language film to win Best Picture, while also winning three more Oscars for Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Feature Film. Suffice to say, Parasite is a hit! And yet, Joon-ho has criticisms.

In an interview with Polygon, the Oscar-winning filmmaker admits that he has his reservations about his well-acclaimed film, claiming that he'll rewatch it and notice little things that don't work for him. His words:

Bong Joon-ho’s Palme d’Or Speech At Cannes Was Famously Very Short Because He And The Cast Were Really Hungry

When Parasite made its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, it'd be an understatement to say it was well-received. The movie earned an eight-minute applause when it won the coveted Palme d'Or, becoming the first South Korean film to win this prize and, later, the first film to receive both the Palme d'Or and Best Picture at the Oscars. Following this lavish response, you'd think Bong Joon-ho would be overflowing with words to express to the rapturous crowd. But his own rapturous hunger got the better of him. His speech was simply the following: "Thank you. Let's all go home."

As Bong Joon-ho explained on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, he and his cast were so hungry, they didn't want to wait any longer. So, Joon-ho kept this speech brief.

Bong Joon-ho Wrote The Lyrics To The Song Choi Woo-shik Sings At The End Of Parasite

In addition to his screenwriting, directing, and producing credits on Parasite, Bong Joon-ho added another contribution to his latest film. According to Time, he apparently wrote the lyrics to "A Glass of Soju," i.e. the song Choi Woo-shik sings near Parasite's end. While the Oscar-winning filmmaker isn't as well-known as a musician, perhaps this brief foray might inspire the director to write more tunes for his much-anticipated follow-up films.

Bong Joon-ho Claims It Would Take 540 Years For Kim Ki-woo To Buy The Home Based On His Salary

While Parasite ends on a bittersweet note, the sad reality is that it would take Kim Ki-woo many, many lifetimes to buy the home based on his salary. Specifically, Bong Joon-ho calculated that it would take 540 years to pull it off (via Idolator).

Did you love Bong Joon-ho's Parasite? Let us know below!

It hasn’t even been a year since Parasite’s historic win at the Oscars. Yet, we’re still learning a lot about how director Bong Joon-ho made the Best Picture winner. Recently, he revealed that Mad Max: Fury Road made a big impact on his life, so much so that it directly influenced Parasite.

At first blush, it’s hard to imagine Mad Max: Fury Road, a non-stop action movie, having inspired Parasite, a dark comedy. But, according to Bong Joon-ho on his Criterion Commentary (via Indiewire), the first time he watched Mad Max: Fury Road, he cried and felt a huge connection with the film. The way Fury Road was made left a big impression on him. Here’s what he said:

This actually makes a lot of sense. Though Parasite had a different narrative structure and genre than Mad Max: Fury Road, it still had that feeling of constant movement and action, with plenty of background information that provided all the backstory an audience needed to understand both the Park and Kim families.

Despite having production problems and on-set drama, Mad Max: Fury Road turned out to be one of the best movies in the summer of 2015. And like a fine wine, it only seems to get better with age.

While they may have many differences, the other thing Parasite and Mad Max: Fury Road have in common is their Academy Award nominations and wins. Funny enough, while Parasite won some of the more prestigious awards, like Best Picture and Best Director, Mad Max: Fury Road won the technical awards, like Film Editing and Production Design.

As it so happens, this isn’t the only time Mad Max: Fury Road inspired a movie that was outside its genre. Earlier this year, Unpregnant director Rachel Lee Goldenberg admitted that Mad Max: Fury Road was one inspiration for her road trip comedy. So it makes you wonder what other movies were inspired by George Miller’s masterpiece.

Bong Joon-ho may be taking a bit of a break after his big win at the Oscars, but George Miller looks to be diving right back into the world of Mad Max. But, rather than doing a sequel to Fury Road, he’ll be tackling a prequel revolving around a younger Furiosa, starring Anya Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth.

Once that untitled movie releases, perhaps that’ll give Bong Joon-ho more inspiration for his own next masterpiece? Time will tell. In the meantime, he’s made plenty of great movies other than Parasite to dive into right away.

Director Bong Joon-ho made history earlier this year, as his film Parasite became the first movie to ever win Best Picture and Best International Feature Film at the Oscars. Building a career of certified hits, and steady acclaim, over his 20 year career as a helmer, Joon-ho’s resume is as eclectic as it is respected. Which makes the timing absolutely perfect for a re-release of his 2003 film Memories of Murder, as Bong Joon-ho’s second film is being revitalized with a new re-issue through theatrical and home video platforms.

In 1986, a series of murders and rapes plague a village in rural South Korea, with its continued investigation making up the majority of Memories of Murder’s story. Throughout this case’s progression, we see a veteran local detective (Song Kang-ho) and younger detective (Kim Sang-kyung) brought in from Seoul to help crack the case. They butt heads with each other, and their co-workers, as they face one dead end after another. As the clues start to fall into place, the work of these men threatens to consume and transform them into totally different people than when they started.

Memories Of Murder is still an absolutely stunning film almost 20 years later.

Memories of Murder is an absolute must-see, whether you’re a fan of Bong Joon-ho’s more recent filmography, or even if you’re just a fan of murder mystery tales. Joon-ho not only directed this film, but he also co-wrote it as well, helping to adapt Kim Kwang-rim’s stage play, which was based on a real series of murders. While this is a film with almost two decades removing it from the present day, Memories of Murder is still absolutely stunning.

All of the sensibilities that Bong Joon-ho showed off with much style and panache in Parasite are on display in Memories of Murder, which really helps with how this film has aged. Some movies are very much of their time, be it through storytelling techniques or even technical execution, and that doesn’t make them lesser films. But it’s still amazing how fresh this movie feels when compared to contemporary works, both visually and thematically.

Bong Joon-Ho’s offbeat sense of humor and expert timing are sharp in Memories Of Murder.

Another aspect that preserves Memories of Murder for a more modern audience is the fact that Bong Joon-ho’s offbeat sense of humor and expert timing never goes out of style. The crimes depicted here are based on true events, and they’re chillingly heinous. Seeing the investigation of the horrible events that unfold is no less a terrible sight than if it would be in a deadly serious police procedural. Not satisfied with merely painting a portrait of “good cop/bad cop,” the morally mixed protagonists presented help Bong Joon-ho infuse Memories of Murder with a very humane sense of style.

Song Kang-ho’s Detective Park Doo-man and his colleagues get drunk and do karaoke together, interrogate suspects through beatings in between meals and watching TV procedurals, and bust each other’s chops regularly. It’s that humor and personality quirks enhance the mystery elements of Memories of Murder; because by the time the gravitas starts to ramp up towards the end of the film, the transformation of our characters hits you with great impact. You really feel for the protagonists on screen, and the investment into their work really pays off in the face of the film’s total experience.

Whether you’ve seen it before, or are new to it, Memories Of Murder deserves the wider release it’s getting now.

Bong Joon-ho’s filmography seems to have a common thread of knowing how to tell uncomfortable and grave stories with a sense of humanity and wit that both cushions and sharpens the blows when they come. Watching Memories of Murder feels like being able to see the exact moment genesis of the maestro’s very own palette, right down to this being the first of several collaborations between the writer/director and actor Song Kang-ho. Even in this first pairing, you can see why these artists would continue to work together, as the chemistry is absolutely electric.

Seeing Memories of Murder for the first time is another one of those moments where you're introduced to a classic that you somehow missed, but are forever grateful for once you’ve found it. A constantly moving murder mystery, audiences might see some of the turns coming, but the mystery on the whole is an elusive beast. The resolution is both satisfying and frustrating, keeping its viewers on the edge of their seats. If you’re a fan of Bong Joon-ho’s more recent output, you owe it to yourself to either revisit or discover the charms of Memories of Murder; a film that couldn’t have picked a better time to find a new audience.

SPOILERS ahead for Parasite. We're about to get into some major specifics about the movie.

If its history-making Best Picture Oscar-win was not enough evidence, Parasite is one widely beloved movie, not just for its breathtaking twist ending, but its powerful social commentary. Yet, the potency of either of those crucial elements to Bong Joon-ho’s masterpiece goes deeper than what most audiences might have caught upon their first viewing.

While the huge, tonally shifting curveball the Korean-language film throws at you by its halfway point may seem to come out of nowhere, there are signs of the contrary throughout. Not to mention, Parasite’s strong representation of the culture clash between differing ranks on the socio-economic ladder has a more symbolic nature beyond the main plot, involving an impoverished family’s systematic infiltration into the lives of another with great wealth.

So, what sort of visual metaphors, subtle foreshadowings, and other fun Easter Eggs should you keep an eye out for the next time you watch Parasite? Nine examples come to mind.

Stink Bugs Ironically Parallel Ki-Taek’s Evolving Disdain For The Parks

Kim Ki-Taek (Song Kang-Ho) hates stink bugs enough to endure hazardous gases in his home to achieve free pest treatment, yet he relates to the pesky insect more than he knows. The Parks, at one point, mention a certain foul scent Ki-Taek carries, unaware of his sensitivity to it as a reminder of his poverty, eventually driving him to murder Park Dong-Ik (Lee Sun-Kyun) and realize that he is this family's "pest." The stink bug's brief appearance in Parasite's opening scene seems like a throwaway expository detail but is actually some brilliant foreshadowing and lends to the film's unique use of smell as a symbolic tool for class distinction.

Ki-Woo Fakes A Diploma From Bong Joon-ho’s Alma Mater

Not all of the blink-and-you-miss-it details in Parasite offer a deeper insight into the film's thematic depth, but some do serve as a peek into Bong Joon-ho's past. The first of those particular examples on this list occurs when Kim Ki-Jung (Park So-Dam) is creating a fake diploma for her brother Ki-Woo (Choi Woo-Sik) made to look like it came from South Korea's Yonsei University, which is where the writer and director earned his degree in Sociology in the late 1980s.

The Park Family Owns A Collection Of Alfred Hitchcock Films

One of Bong Joon-ho's biggest creative inspirations is Alfred Hitchcock, the master of suspense behind such classic thrillers as The Birds or Vertigo. His influence is made clear in Parasite, from the design of the many staircases used in pivotal moments from the film taking inspiration from the Bates house in Psycho to a glimpse of movies from the legendary filmmaker's catalog appearing in the Park family's personal collection.

An Early Parasite Shot Is Framed To Distinguish Characters' Social Classes

Just about every single detail of Parasite is worth noting for its thematic value, right down to the framing of some of its key moments, such as when Ki-Woo looks out from a window in the Park household to see Moon Gwang (Lee Jeong-Eun) notifying Park Yeon Kyo (Jo Yeo-Jeong) of his presence. Look more carefully and you notice the corner of the window creates a distinct line separating the well-to-do housewife from her housekeeper and the impoverished young man, providing a visual representation of what separates the characters on a socio-economic scale.

Da-Song’s "Self-portrait" Foreshadows Parasite’s Twist

Our initial tour of the Park Family's house also provides us with our first clue as to what secrets are lurking underneath in Parasite. Park Yeon Kyo cannot help but show off her "prodigal" son, Da-Song's (Jung Hyeon Jun), artwork, including what she assumes is a self-portrait despite looking nothing like him. This may be because it is actually the young boy's rendering of the ghost he saw emerge from the basement, who is really Moon Gwang's husband, Geun Se (Park Myeong Hoon).

Dong-Ik Notes That Moon Gwang "Ate Enough For Two"

That creepy painting is not the only clue to Moon Gwang's hidden agenda that shows up early on. After the Park Family housekeeper is fired, Park Dong-Ik remarks to Kim Ki-Taek that the only shortcoming of hers he noticed was how she would eat double the amount she should have. Of course, as we learn by the halfway point of Parasite, that extra helping of food was meant for Geun Se which she, apparently, did not do a good enough job sneaking down to him.

A Continuity Error Before Parasite’s Big Twist Was Left In

Despite all our praises of the contrary, not every one of the visual Easter Eggs found in Parasite is intentional. As the film's editor Jinmo Yang revealed in an interview with Variety, the dog jerky that Ki-Jung has been snacking on as she and her family enjoy having the Park house to themselves changes from her left hand to her right hand as we cut from a close up of the Kims to a wide shot when the doorbell is heard. He and Bong Joon-ho opted to leave it in for viewers to spot, although it seems to often go unnoticed.

Song Kang-Ho’s Snowpiercer Character Shares A Name With The Park House Architect

Another detail in Parasite that only those who know Bong Joon-ho's career best would take note of is one very subtle connection to his 2014 post-apocalyptic social satire Snowpiercer. Song Kang-Ho also stars in that English language, modern sci-fi classic as one of the titular bullet train's designers, Namgoong Minsoo. Namgoong is also the name of illustrious architect credited for designing the Park's house, which incites question as to how these technically minded characters may be related.

The Kims’ Descent Home Represents Their Dip In Social Class

We have focused on many of the most clever examples of symbolic class commentary in Parasite, but the most noteworthy, devastating, and strikingly beautiful visual representation of this theme is Ki-Taek, Ki-Woo, and Ki-Jung's journey home in the middle of a storm. The entire escape from the Park House is a literal descent down several flights of stairs to reach their caved-in, slum-like neighborhood, showing for the first time in the entire film just how truly "low" the Kims stoop from where the Parks stand on the economic totem pole. It is one of the finer examples of how a scene can be equally exciting and rich in theme.

What do you think? Did these details sneak right past you the first time you saw Parasite or would any devoted fan of Bong Joon-ho’s style be able to catch these immediately? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check back for additional information and updates on this Academy Award-winning hit film here on CinemaBlend.

Following its historic Best Picture win earlier this month at the Academy Awards, Parasite has been receiving a lot of attention and rightfully so. Maybe you’ve already seen Parasite and are trying to convince other people in your life to go check it out but can’t persuade them to see it in theaters or maybe you just want to watch it again yourself. Well, I have good news for you because after its Oscar win, Parasite is heading to streaming.

Where You'll Be Able To Stream Oscar Winner Parasite

Good news, folks, Parasite is available on Hulu. It was announced in February that the streaming service primarily owned and fully operated by The Walt Disney Company will be the exclusive streaming home for the Best Picture winner beginning on Wednesday, April 8. So now Hulu subscribers can watch all the twists and turns of Bong Joon-Ho’s masterful film from the comfort of their own home as many times as they want.

The field of streaming services is crowded and growing more so by the day and everyone is vying for eyeballs and subscriber dollars and that means offering up compelling content people can’t get anywhere else. So this is a big win for Hulu that actually stems from a multi-year partnership deal the streamer made with Parasite studio Neon back in 2017 that gave Hulu exclusive first-window streaming rights for all of Neon’s content.

Little did the service know then that it'd have a Best Picture winner in just a few years time. And not just a Best Picture winner, Parasite nabbed four Oscars at the Academy Awards including Best Original Screenplay, Best International Film and Best Director for Bong Joon-Ho.

Where Else You Can Watch Parasite

For those that haven’t seen it yet, Parasite tells the story of a poor family that cons its way into the service of a rich one. To say anything more would risk spoiling the surprises in the darkly funny and biting film. Parasite is already available to purchase on Blu-ray and Digital and is also available to rent digitally, in case you're not subscribed to Hulu or would rather own it.

That said, a lot of people don’t check movies out until they come on streaming services, so hopefully being on ‘free’ streaming with a lower barrier of entry will give Hulu’s millions of subscribers enough incentive to check out the multiple Oscar winner alongside Hulu’s other content, like originals The Handmaid’s Tale and Castle Rock.

Alas, the home media release means that Parasite's theatrical run is now over, though it certainly had quite a time on the big screen.. The film has received a theatrical expansion following its performance at the Oscars and got a major box office boost to boot. According to Box Office Mojo, Parasite made $53.3 million domestically and $200.7 million worldwide, bringing its worldwide total past the $250 million mark to $254.1 million.

Where You Can Stream Other Popular Bong Joon-Ho Movies

Remember that exclusive deal that Hulu has with Neon? Well, that means that Parasite isn’t the only Bong Joon-Ho movie you can enjoy if you’re subscribed to the platform. On the same day that Parasite was added to Hulu, the streaming service also added 2000’s Barking Dogs Never Bite (Bong’s directorial debut), 2006’s The Host and 2009’s Mother. So now you have the option of having a Bong Joon-Ho marathon on Hulu, whether that’s starting with Parasite and then going earlier into Bong’s filmography, or watching these movies in chronological order. The choice is yours.

Check out our 2020 release schedule to see what movies are headed to theaters this year.

SPOILERS ahead for Parasite.

Although Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite first premiered at Cannes last spring, the South Korean movie has particularly become popular among the masses this month when it took home Best Picture at the 2020 Oscars over the likes of 1917, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and The Irishman, among others It’s the first non-English language film to win the Academy’s top prize, and well, it deserved it.

But there’s a specific form of torture the Kim family enacts on the Parks’ housekeeper in order to have her join the entire family con that has each of them finding work within the house: peaches. Once they realize Moon-gwang has a severe allergy to the fruit, they use it as a weapon to convince Mrs. Park she has tuberculosis. But how in the heck did Bong Joon-ho think this up? Here’s what the Oscar-winning writer/director said:

Oh, interesting. This certainly isn’t random – Bong Joon-ho has a specific memory of one of his friends being affected by a peach allergy, and it made its way into this year’s Best Picture. The filmmaker also goes out of the way to defend himself about not being the one to throw the peach at his friend. He was just collecting information for the biggest movie of his career, that’s all.

Bong Joon-ho revealed this detail during a Reddit Q&A where fans could ask him anything. In the thread, another fan pointed out that they noticed the presence of peaches in his 2003 film Memories of Murder. While answering questions to fans, Bong also talked about how he didn’t realize there are big rocks in both Parasite and his 2009 movie Mother. The director has actually been making movies for twenty years, if you’re just discovering his filmmaking. Some common threads are sure to come up.

Along with winning four Oscars on awards night, Parasite has become a box office hit, with $224 million in international earnings so far. After gaining some traction during the Academy Awards, the movie increased its presence in theaters by 234%, which is particularly impressive because it was already available to rent/buy online, and again... it’s a foreign film with subtitles.

Parasite will soon be heading to Hulu on April 8. Plus, Bong Joon-ho and The Big Short filmmaker Adam McKay are currently working on a television series based on the movie for HBO.

Bong Joon-ho and his 2019 masterpiece Parasite shocked the world in early February when the film took home the top honors at the 2020 Academy Awards. Beating out films like 1917, Ford v Ferrari, and other critically acclaimed pictures, Parasite became something of a cultural phenomenon and has exposed the world to the beauty and craft of Korean movies. Thanks to Parasite and its creator, American audiences will now become more familiarized with his earlier films as well as the films produced by other visionary Korean filmmakers.

Korean cinema has had a long and storied history of producing some of the most inventive, artistic, and shockingly violent movies the world has ever seen. To make things easier for everyone looking to explore the depths of the Korean film world, we’ve compiled a list of 10 of the best films to come out of the East Asian nation. From tales of love and revenge to those of families coming together in the most trying of times, here is just a sampling of what Korean cinema has to offer.

10. Poetry (2010)

Released in 2010, Lee Chang-dong’s Poetry centers around an elderly woman, Yang Mi-ja (Yoon Jeong-hee), who has recently taken up a poetry class after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and realizing that her grandson is responsible for the brutal group sexual assault of a female student who subsequently committed suicide. Over the course of the film, Yang is forced to confront her grandson, the victim’s mother, and the parents of the attackers, all while her mental state deteriorates.

This movie, like much of Korean cinema, is not for the faint of heart and explores topics such as violence, corruption, losing faith in one’s family, and losing your grasp on your own mental awareness. Despite all of this, Poetry is a strikingly beautiful piece of cinema and offers audiences peace, love, and tranquility through its numerous poetry scenes and as Yang makes sense of her grandson’s crime and her own fleeting memory.

9. The Wailing (2016)

Released in 2016, Na Hong-jin’s The Wailing tells the story of a small village that has been taken over by a mysterious epidemic of rage and violence upon the arrival of a suspicious stranger. Over time, the rage and suspicion turns to something more sinister as the villagers begin to brutally murder one another. The Wailing features compelling performances from Kwak Do-won as police detective Jong-goo and Hwang Jung-min as Il-gwang, a shaman who has been hired to protect the village who is called in after Hwang’s daughter, Hyo-jin (Kim Hwan-hee) becomes infected with the same condition.

What starts out as a simple story of villagers fearing and condemning a stranger new to town quickly turns into a complex narrative revolving around demons, witches, and other spiritual and supernatural entities. This Korean horror movie is a must-watch for anyone who is a fan of the genre.

8. Burning (2018)

Released in 2018, Lee Chang-dong’s Burning follows what seems to be a love triangle involving aspiring novelist Lee Jong-su (Yoo Ah-in), his childhood friend Shin Hae-mi (Jeon Jong-seo) and Ben (portrayed by The Walking Dead’s Steven Yeun), but as the plot unfolds, we realize that this is anything but a simple romantic feature. Before Ham-mi goes off for a trip to Africa, she asks Jong-su to watch her cat, Boil, while she is gone. Upon her return, Hae-mi is joined by the mysterious, and wealthy, Ben. Once Ben reveals to Jong-su what he likes to do in his free time, the tone of the picture changes entirely.

Without giving too much away, the title of the film, Burning, is shown to have more than one meaning, as we find out throughout the course of this highly praised piece of Korean cinema.

7. Old Boy (2003)

Released in 2003, Park Chan-wook’s Old Boy (not to be confused with 2013 American remake by Spike Lee), is perhaps one of the most gutting movies I have ever seen. This action-packed, traumatic, and at points, disgusting movie, tells the story of Oh Dae-su (Choi Mink-ski), who has been imprisoned for the past 15 years for reasons unknown to him. Over the course of his imprisonment in a hotel room, Oh spends his time training, planning, and contemplating the life decisions that led him there.

Old Boy goes into overdrive once Oh is released from his confinement and attempts to find the person, or persons, responsible for his capture 15 years earlier. This journey takes audiences to places they never thought they could or wanted to go once they get there. Without giving too much away, the twist at the end of this film is one that we’re still talking about 17 years after the film was first released. One thing that is for sure is that Old Boy gives us one of the most gratifying single-take shots in all of cinema in the infamous hallway fight scene.

6. The Host (2006)

Long before Bong Joon-ho introduced the world to Parasite, Snowpiercer, and even the criminally underrated Okja, the visionary filmmaker was busy with movies like Memories Of Murder (more on that later on) and the 2006 monster film The Host. Touching on a lot of the same themes seen in Parasite, The Host centers around Park Gang-du (Parasite’s Song Kang-ho) and his family after his daughter is viciously abducted and eaten by a monster who lives in the nearby Han River.

What follows is one of the most inventive takes on the monster movie genre in decades, one that would earn the film’s creator international praise and a stepping stone for larger-scale movies later on in his career.

5. The Handmaiden (2016)

Released in 2016, The Handmaiden is a retelling of the novel, Fingersmith by Welsh novelist Sarah Waters from the Park Chan-wook, the director of Old Boy. Set in 1930s colonial Korea and Japan, The Handmaiden tells a story about the relationship between a young Japanese woman and her Korean handmaiden, who happens to be a part of a plot to defraud her wealthy employer.

Anyone familiar with Park’s previous titles like Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance, Lady Vengeance, or Thirst will know what to expect before even starting this movie. Combine that with lurid details from the Victorian era found in the original source material, and you have yourself the recipe for a sensational tale of love, murder, and all other sorts of evil.

4. I Saw The Devil (2011)

Released in 2011, Kim Jee-woon’s I Saw The Devil asks a simple question: How far would you go in order to get revenge? That question is answered and then some in this critically acclaimed crime thriller. Centered around the reign of serial killer Jang Kyung-chul (Oldboy’s Choi Min-sik) and Kim Soo-hyun (Lee Byung-hun) the man hellbent on bringing him to justice after his pregnant fiancée is brutally murdered, the film explores how far a grieving man will allow himself to fall down an evil path in order to get justice for the murder.

By the time this brutal and heartbreaking film comes to an end, it’s hard to say whether or not the Soo-hyun is justified in his approach to justice and even harder to tell the difference between the heroes and villains of its story.

3. Memories Of Murder (2003)

Released in 2003, Bong Joon-ho’s Memories Of Murder is based on the true story of the fumbling small-town police detectives who fudge the case involving South Korea’s first recorded serial killer, which took place between 1986 and 1991. Starring Song Kang-ho as Park Doo-man, the detective in charge of the case, and Kim Sang-kyung as Seo Tae-yoon, a detective from South Korean capital, Seoul, Memories Of Murder accurately portrays the frustrating attempts at solving the historic serial killings and man behind the crimes.

This was only Bong’s second feature film (he released Barking Dogs Never Bite in 2000), and is a must-watch for anyone who wants to see more from the Academy Award-winning filmmaker. People who don’t like unhappy endings should be aware, however, as this crime drama isn’t for the faint of heart.

2. Train To Busan (2016)

In 2016, Yeon Sang-ho gave international audiences one of the most engaging, emotional, and terrifying zombie movies to be released in the past 20+ years with Train To Busan. Taking place primarily on a bullet train headed towards the city of Busan, the film explores ideas such as the treatment of impoverished citizens, how they’re viewed by society’s elites, and how in one shape or form, death is coming for all us. The film also touches on the true meaning of parenthood, redemption, and finding the will to survive in the face of certain death.

This emotionally complex zombie film is anchored by memorable performances by Gong Yoo as Seok-woo, a work-obsessed father trying to get his daughter, Su-an (Kim Su-an) to her mother’s house in Basan, and Ma Dong-seok as Sang-hwa, a tough, muscle-bound man traveling with his pregnant wife, Seong-kyeong (Jun Yu-mi). Throughout the film, both men do whatever it takes to protect the lives of the loved ones as they learn what it means to be a father. These examples of sacrificing oneself for others lead to one of the most satisfying and heartbreaking conclusions to any zombie film to be released in a very long time.

1. Parasite (2019)

And then there is Parasite. What can be said about this movie that hasn’t already been said? It took home the top honors at multiple awards shows in early 2020, including Best Original Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Picture at the 92nd annual Academy Awards. This movie is that good.

For Parasite, Bong Joon-ho took elements and ideas nearly every one of his previous movies, including the close-knit bond of the economically-depressed Kim family and how their closeness and lack of prosperity juxtaposes against the well-off but distant Park family who they come to serve. We won’t go into great detail about the intricacies of the film’s plot, but we will say go see this movie. You might think that the film is over-hyped, but this is one of those rare instances where a film exceeds all expectations. Once you’ve seen the film for yourself, make sure to check out our explanation of the film’s mind-boggling ending.

There you have it… 10 of the best Korean movies. We can’t recommend any of these enough, so do yourself a favor and add each of them to your watch list. And don’t worry, you’ll get used to the subtitles in no time at all.

The 2020 Academy Awards was an especially historical one for Bong Joon-ho. The writer/director of Parasite won four Oscars that night, including Best Oiriginal Screenplay, Best International Feature Film, Best Director and Best Picture. The South Korean filmmaker made history and won over quite a few legendary fellow nominees, such as Martin Scorsese.

During a news conference in Seoul, South Korea (per THR) with the Parasite cast and staff, Bong Joon-ho shared the kind words The Irishman director wrote to him following his Oscar wins. Here’s what the Parasite director said:

How sweet! Martin Scorsese clearly respects Bong Joon-ho as a filmmaker and went out of his way to send him an encouraging note. Following an exhausting year of promoting Parasite around the world, the director announced his plans to take a break, but as Scorsese implored, he hopes it’s not for too long.

During Bong Joon-ho’s speech after winning Best Director, he spoke specifically about Martin Scorsese to the Hollywood audience and to millions of televisions. He quoted the Goodfellas icon for saying the “most personal is the most creative” – something he heard back when he was studying cinema.

His tribute had the entire audience standing up to clap for the 77-year-old filmmaker. He also went out of his way to thank fellow nominee Quentin Tarantino for supporting his work before American audiences were aware of them. Check out the full Oscars speech below:

During the Seoul press conference, Bong Joon-ho talked about how he’s most proud of Parasite’s achievements outside its Oscar win. It became a widely successful film and broke box office records for South Korean cinema. He shared his satisfaction with the film not holding back about its messages about wealth disparity and ending up being successful anyway.

The director initially thought Parasite would be “risky commercially.” The genre-bending thriller follows two families from different class levels who end up being under the same roof. Since winning Best Picture, the movie’s box office earnings have risen over 200 percent. The movie has made $197 million globally and has the most post-win ticket sales for any Best Picture winner since 2010’s The King Speech.

Bong Joon-ho is currently developing an HBO television series based on Parasite with Adam McKay of The Big Short and Vice on board to write the scripts. The series is expected to be five or six episodes. Check out Parasite in theaters and stream it on Amazon.

The 92nd Academy Awards became an important moment in history when Parasite nabbed Best Picture and became the first foreign-language film to take home the accolade. But the win isn’t only about overcoming “the one-inch tall barrier of subtitles” its director so gracefully expressed during award season. It is a celebration and recognition of Bong Joon-ho’s incredible body of work across twenty years.

Bong Joon-ho is a unique voice of the art form of cinema who commands meaning to each of his films. They’re the kind of movies where you’ll remember exactly where you were sitting and who you were with when you first witnessed them. Their interwoven themes of capitalism and the class system are often jarring, oddly humorous and one of a kind. But which are his best? Now, the South Korean director hasn’t actually ever had his name on a badly-reviewed film, but let’s go through his work from worst to best. Here's how they stack up:

7. Barking Dogs Never Bite (2000)

First up at No. 7 is Bong Joon-ho’s first feature film ever, Barking Dogs Never Bite. This is actually a particularly interesting one now that Parasite has amassed fans because there are quite a few similarities between the two. The 2000 South Korean film follows an ex-college professor who becomes vastly annoyed by the barking coming from his neighbors dogs in his apartment building. Irritated to the point of lunacy, he decides to kidnap the poor pups and abuse them.

Enter Park Hyun-nam, a young woman who works at the apartment complex. When she learns of the missing dog, she becomes entangled in the whole nasty situation. Barking Dogs Never Bite gets a low mark here mainly because I’m not a fan of watching dogs suffer! That being said, Bong Joon-ho’s first movie is very good. It’s an effective enough comedy thriller for audiences to forget its somewhat college-filmy quality.

6. Okja (2017)

Just ahead of Bong Joon-ho’s turn to Parasite, the director made a movie for Netflix called Okja. The movie goes between his Korean roots and recent turn to Hollywood with 2013’s Snowpiercer. The 2017 movie is a colorful satire about a South Korean girl named Mija and her best friend, Okja – a “super pig” developed by a big-business food manufacturer to quadruple their sales in the midst of a more environmentally conscious world.

As the company seeks to take Okja back for harvesting, Mija goes on a cross-country adventure to save him, meeting environmental terrorists played by Paul Dano, Steven Yuen and Lily Collins along the way. Jake Gyllenhaal also plays a wacky television personality and Tilda Swinton is a brace-wearing, blonde-haired heir to the company. It’s highly entertaining and reminiscent of Miyazaki’s work such as My Neighbor Totoro.

5. The Host (2006)

Bong Joon-ho’s first mainstream project hit screens almost fifteen years ago with a massive monster movie made a $6 million budget. The Host became a Korean blockbuster, becoming the highest grossing film from the region at the time ($89.4 million). Through its limited release in the United States, it made big waves as well – even finding a place on Quentin Tarantino’s top 20 films since 1992. (Bong Joon-ho just won over Tarantino in the Best Director category at the Oscars).

The Host has Parasite’s patriarch Song Kang Ho playing a father whose daughter is kidnapped by a mutated killer fish. It combines horror elements with fun action and humor, along with commenting on environmental degradation.

4. Snowpiercer (2013)

His first English-language film and biggest-budget project to date was Snowpiercer. Similar to Parasite, this movie discusses the class system with a physical representation of it. As the Best Picture winner has an impoverished family infiltrating a wealthy household, Snowpiercer has lower-class workers trying to reach the front of a train during a modern ice age.

This is not only one of Bong Joon-ho’s best movies, but an underrated and new turn for Avengers actor Chris Evans. Tilda Swinton plays a similarly colorful upper-class villain such as in Okja and Song Kang Ho once again finds a lead role.

3. Mother (2009)

Heading into the top three is Bong Joon-ho’s fourth film, Mother. And no, I’m not talking about that Jennifer Lawrence movie. 2009’s Mother is a thriller about a codependent mother and her mentally-disabled son. The movie follows Kim Hye-ja’s “mother” as she goes on a desperate attempt to prove her son is innocent of murder.

Mother is perhaps Bong Joon-ho’s most poetic film that blends his rapport with grotesque horror with elements of family drama. Once again, he is able to straddle the line between intense themes and play with humor in a beautiful and intriguing way.

2. Memories of Murder (2003)

This may be Bong Joon-ho’s second film ever, but it’s also his second-best movie to date too. The 2003 Korean film differentiates from his other work because it’s actually based on fact. Memories of Murder follows a pair of detectives (one of them again played by the immensely talented Song Kang Ho) as they are on the hunt for one of the first serial killers in Korean history.

Memories of Murder is much like David Fincher’s Zodiac in how the movie approaches police work, except it came first. The movie set in the ‘80s is desperate, it’s gripping, moving and it’s the beginning of Bong Joon-ho showing the immense talent he undoubtedly possesses.

1. Parasite (2019)

A filmmakers’ Best Picture winner doesn’t necessarily always correlate with their actual “best” work, but not in the case of Parasite. Bong Joon-ho’s latest work brings together everything that makes his filmmaking great and elevates his strengths. Parasite clutches on to his South Korean roots while also implementing the strengths he’s discovered on his other projects over twenty years.

Parasite tells a distinct and timeless message of class struggles in a particularly visually masterful and layered way. It’s proof that Bong Joon-ho is capable of truly incredible moviemaking. It feels like the natural amalgamation of his already incredible body of work.

Which Bong Joon-ho movie are you checking out after Parasite? Sound off in the comments, share your favorite of his films and vote in the poll below!

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It seems like Parasite just can’t stop winning. Fresh off its huge and well-deserved Best Picture victory at the Oscars, Bong Joon-ho’s genre-bending exploration of socioeconomic disparity is picking up fans left and right. And that’s thanks in part to a huge box office boost.

This weekend, the film began screening in 941 additional theaters, expanding its total presence to 2,001 screens across the United States. That amounts to a 234.2% increase – easily the biggest of the week. That should come as no surprise, as Parasite has generated a huge amount of attention following its historic wins for Best Foreign Film, Best Original Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Picture at the 2020 Academy Awards. And this increase in theaters will only help the movie build on its already impressive box office legacy.

Since it won the Palme d’Or at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, Parasite has defied expectations. Propelled by great word of mouth, it was popular with cinephiles the moment it began a limited release in the United States. Buzz about its amazing cast and twisty plot led to even more interest. Last November, it became the highest grossing foreign film of 2019. To date, it’s grossed $44.3 million in the United States, and $175.3 million worldwide. As it began to pick up momentum during award season, fans online slowly but surely joined the BongHive – a group of enthusiastic fans of the film’s legendary director. And that was all before the Oscar buzz.

Parasite is the first film not in the English language to take home the Best Picture Oscar. It’s an impressive feat, made even more astonishing when you factor in that it’s the first film from South Korea to ever even be nominated at the Academy Awards. Since its surprise victory, there has been some debate as to whether or not the film’s subtitles would deter from moviegoers enjoyment. But it seems as though theater owners, at least, are willing to increase its availability so that people can decide for themselves.

And the visibility to Parasite won’t stop there. The film is already available for home viewing on DVD and Blu-ray and streaming services, and Criterion Collection announced it will be distributing it as well. And shortly after it took home a Golden Globe for Foreign Language Film, HBO announced it was working with Bong Joon-ho to develop an English adaptation as a limited series. That news was met with some backlash from fans of the film, who feel that it doesn’t need to be retooled for an American audience. We don’t yet know if the TV series will be a sequel, a remake, or something else entirely. But if nothing else, it indicates that Parasite’s legacy will continue to capture our attention for the foreseeable future.

On Oscar night, in a delightfully surprising turn-of-events, Parasite took home four Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director for Bong Joon-ho. As the first foreign-language film to ever win this prestigious prize, it was a historic night for the Academy Awards. And it was most certainly a triumphant win for the acclaimed filmmaker, who should hopefully gain a lot of new fans from this weekend's award ceremony. For those of you who finally got a chance to check out the hit movie and want to see more like it, you're in luck! While there are only a few movies out there like Parasite, there are, at least, a few similarly worthwhile movies that are available at your viewing convenience to watch on various different streaming services.

For this list, we compiled a number of different titles available on streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and more that should hopefully quench your thirst for more movies like Parasite. Whether it's comedies, dramas, horror flicks, or other genre-benders from Bong Joon-ho himself, you should hopefully find a variety of different films with similar themes, concepts, and ideas to the Best Picture-winning hit in the titles listed down below.

Okja (Netflix)

Before Parasite, Bong Joon-ho made Okja, a sorely overlooked Netflix action-adventure centered around a young South Korean girl and her superpig as they embark on a cross-country adventure to keep the giant animal alive while various insidious corporate figures try to kill the oversized animal. The movie features a talented ensemble, including Tilda Swinton, Jake Gyllenhaal (in a wonderfully maniac turn), Paul Dano, Lily Collins, Giancarlo Esposito, and Steven Yeun, to name a few, but it's truly the warm central friendship dynamic between Ahn Seo-hyn and the CG title character that sells this oddball little charmer, with a message about animal preservation and environmental safety that really hits home in its admirably winning simplicity. Watch it on Netflix here.

The Handmaiden (Amazon Prime)

Inspired by the novel The Fingersmith by Sarah Waters, The Handmaiden is the most recent film from acclaimed South Korean filmmaker Park Chan-wook (Oldboy), and it's most certainly one that's worth checking out, especially if you loved Parasite. An erotic psychological thriller, The Handmaiden centers around a woman who is hired to become a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress — though she ultimately has more nefarious intentions in place.

The Handmaiden is certainly twisty and unconventional in its approach, but it's layered, impactful commentary on the relationship (in more ways than one, as viewers will discover) between the elite and the lower class should definitely ring more-than-a-few comparisons to the messages and themes found at the forefront of Parasite. Indeed, if you love Bong Joon-ho's movies, you should definitely check out Park Chan-wook's filmography as well. There are a lot of great movies to be found therein. You can start with The Handmaiden, which is currently available to stream through Amazon Prime.

Snowpiercer (Netflix)

Before Parasite turned into a universally-acclaimed, Best Picture-winning achievement, Snowpiercer was set to become Bong Joon-ho's formal entrance into American cinema. Alas, things didn't go as planned. The director publicly clashed with producer Harvey Weinstein, notably with the producer wanting to trim the movie in a shorter, more action-oriented way. While Bong got his final cut, it came at a sacrifice. The dystopian movie received a limited release and little fanfare, but it did find its audience in due time — most notably with an equally-troubled TNT series based on the sci-fi movie set to be released later this year. And it's easy to see why. The brooding, compellingly metaphorical film is truly another Bong Joon-ho hit.

Featuring similar themes on class warfare, the divide between the upper class and the disenfranchised, and the desire of the lower class to rebel against their oppressors, Snowpiercer is yet another inventive, immersive social commentary from the award-winning director, and it features arguably Chris Evans' best performance yet, along with inspired production design, a smartly-paced plot, and several biting bits of dark satire. If you're looking to expand your horizons, most notably by hopping on-board the Bong Joon-ho train, you can check out Snowpiercer on Netflix! It's worth your while.

Train to Busan (Netflix)

Additionally, if you enjoyed both Parasite and Snowpiercer, you should make a point to check out Train to Busan. Directed by Yeon Sang-ho, the South Korean zombie movie, which takes place on a train (as the title would suggest), finds a group of passengers fighting for their lives whenever the zombie apocalypse breaks out throughout the country. Naturally, like any good zombie movie, there's more going on beyond the surface, and this engaging film is one that certainly earned a lot of fans around the world. So much so that there are reportedly plans in place to do an English-language remake at some point from producer James Wan. Whether or not that movie comes to fruition, you should check out Train to Busan, which is available on Netflix.

Shoplifters (Hulu)

If you're looking to continue watching recent Palme D'or-winning movies, look no further than 2018's recipient, Shoplifters. A beautiful, emotionally devastating tale of a non-biological family who relies on frequent acts of shoplifting in order to survive, the first Japanese film to ever win the Cannes Film Festival's most prestigious prize shares a lot of similar ideas to Bong Joon-ho's Parasite, though its approach is a little bit more melancholy and subdued in comparison. The character piece is fragile and heartbreaking in its execution, though the idea of a poor, unconventional family using their wits to make their way through an unforgiving world on their own terms should resonate with those viewers who found themselves entranced by the themes at the center of Parasite. But above all else, it's simply a lovely film. Shoplifters will undoubtedly steal your heart. Check it out. It's now on Hulu.

Sorry To Bother You (Hulu)

A joyfully inspired surrealist satire, Sorry to Bother You serves as the feature directorial debut of musician Boots Riley. It centers on LaKeith Stanfield's Cassius "Cash" Green, a young, low-level telemarketer who ascends the levels of his company by adopting a "white voice" and quickly climbing up the corporate ladder. To spoil anymore would be a sin, but with wonderful production design, richly inspired comedic beats, an absurd wit, and a bunch of sharp commentary on capitalism and the rise of poor into the ranks of the rich, Sorry to Bother You serves as good company to Parasite. Also, it features a cast that includes Tessa Thompson, Armie Hammer, Danny Glover, and other big names. You can check it out for yourself on Hulu.

The Killing Of A Sacred Deer (Amazon Prime)

Before Yorgos Lanthimos made his Oscar-friendly The Favourite, the Greek director made a bleak, ruthlessly compelling psychological thriller-horror film as only he can with The Killing of a Sacred Deer. Focused on a cardiac surgeon, played by Colin Farrell, who finds his life thrown for a loop when a teen boy from his past, played by Dunkirk's Barry Keoghan, turns his doctor's family (including Nicole Kidman as the mom) ill as an act of vengeful, calculated act of retribution for a past sin from his family's history, The Killing of a Sacred Deer might be too cold and dourer for some folks' tastes. Nevertheless, if you like your pointed and uncompromising commentaries on the dangers of the rich and powerful on the poor and misfortunate with a bit of a bitter aftertaste (which is the case for me, at least), you should give The Killing of a Sacred Deer a shot. It's now available on Amazon Prime.

The Host (Tubi)

While Parasite will serve as many people's introductions to Bong Joon-ho, my first Bong hit came when I watched The Host in 2007. The monster film centers around a father's efforts to rescue his daughter from a creature who kidnaps her, and through its unique blend of genre and tones, you should expect another brilliantly layered film from this master filmmaker. Also starring Song Kang-ho, who played the patriarch in Parasite (and a leading actor who often collaborates with the director), The Host became more of a success in South Korea than it did in the United States, but if you're making a concentrated effort to catch up on the director's past movies, this is most certainly one that you don't want to miss. You can watch it for free on Tubi.

The Invitation (Netflix)

If you enjoyed the escalating tension of Parasite's climatic birthday party sequence, but you're also in the mood for a somber, slow-burn thriller as well, you might want to check out The Invitation. Karyn Kusama's thriller is set in an extravagant home, not unlike the upper-class location at the center of Parasite, and it centers around characters of different economical backgrounds at a dinner party which goes disastrously wrong, building from a fine sense of dread into a state of chaos. Ultimately, while not a clean comparison to Parasite, it does feature a few comparable points. If you think this one might be of interest to you, particularly with Logan Marshall-Green and John Carroll Lynch giving a couple fine performances, give it a watch on Netflix.

Us (HBO)

As a follow-up to his acclaimed, award-winning directorial debut, Get Out, Jordan Peele's sophomore feature, Us, didn't get quite as much attention and notice as his first movie, which is a shame because it's possibly just as good (and possibly even better) than the movie he made prior. Centered on a Californian family who finds their vacation disturbed by a creepy, mysterious group of doppelgängers of themselves, known as the tethered, Us is a layered, compelling look at classicism and marginalization, as well as the unspoken divides found throughout a nation that prides itself on prosperity. There is more going on, of course, but a lot of these themes echo throughout Parasite. If you haven't had a chance to check out Us, watch it on HBO.

Which movies would you recommend to someone who loved Parasite? Let us know in the comment section below.

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Parasite was already having a moment before it won myriad Academy Awards over the weekend. However, now that it has won Best Picture and other awards, there’s even better news for those who haven’t caught Bong Joon Ho’s latest movie. In fact, Parasite is going to be expanding its theatrical release so that more people in more place can check out the film.

Parasite actually premiered at Cannes Film Festival way back in May of 2019 before subsequently being released into theaters in limited release in the United States in October of 2019. It slowly cast a wider net from there, eventually reaching a max of 1,060. Until now. Following the historic win for the South Korean filmmaker’s movie, Parasite will be branching out to over 2000 theaters in the U.S, per THR.

The move should be an interesting case study. In the past, just getting nominated for big awards events – think the Golden Globes, The BAFTAS and the Academy Awards, etc – would bump up a movie’s profile in theaters. Being an awards contender can have dramatic impact on box office, particularly prior to the Oscars airing.

However, Comscore has previously reported that box office boosts after big Oscars wins are not as big as the stuff leading up to the big night of handing out statues and writing political speeches.

Parasite, however, is an interesting case. Although the South Korean movie has made a healthy $35 million at the domestic box office so far (and much more worldwide) it was certainly an underdog for Best Picture and was a welcome surprise as the winner at the awards. Here are the domestic totals for the other nominees:

As you can see, while Parasite has brought in a decent amount of money worldwide, domestically it hadn't had as much of an impact as most of the other Best Picture nominees prior to this weekend's wins. This is notwithstanding the Netflix releases (which barely went to theaters at all) or Jojo Rabbit, which had the smallest impact on theatergoers of the nominees.

As it stands, Parasite is one of the highest-grossing foreign language films to hit domestic theaters over the years, which maybe says more about an American dislike for subtitles than it says about Parasite’s success so far. It’s on its way to beating Guillermo del Toro’s beautiful tragedy Pan’s Labyrinth at the domestic box office, however, and we will keep you updated regarding the movie's newfound theatrical strategy and how it plays out.

The movie could make up to $45 or $50 million in its additional release, according to estimates, but the timing is interesting, considering Parasite is already available on DVD, Digital and Blu-ray. If you’d like to order the DVD, it’s not prohibitively expensive for families, either.

Regardless, the good news for Parasite beyond its Best Picture nomination and its other wins is that it should be easy and accessible for people to check it out now that it’s getting so much additional traction.

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After months of ceremonies and acceptance speeches, Awards Season has finally come to a close. Last night was the annual Academy Awards, which dealt out the most coveted trophy in the film world. The host-less ceremony had lots of memorable moments, but there's so much that we folks at home don't get to see. There's plenty of backstage antics, as well as meetings in the green room and bars. Luckily one of those cute moments was caught on camera, when Oscar winners Renee Zellweger and Parasite director Bong Joon-ho hung out at a bar.

Renee Zellweger and Bong Joon-ho both had big years this Awards Season, and therefore must have met a number of times. Zellweger swept every acting award for her performance in Judy while Joon-ho's movie Parasite made history by winning Best Picture as an International Feature. Somebody caught a moment between the two artists backstage, and it's enough to make your day. Check it out below.

I mean, how cute is that? Obviously Awards Ceremonies like the Oscars are high stakes for the filmmakers involved, so it's nice to see a moment of levity and comradery backstage. Especially for two artists who didn't even have the privilege of working together.

The above video comes to us from Variety, as the outlet was reporting live from the Academy Awards. This includes the red carpet and ceremony, as well as the backstage antics of its A-listers. The green room is a place for the talent to unwind, and maybe even grab a cocktail along the way. Or in the case of Renee Zellweger and Bong Joon-ho, take a breather and let their new Academy Awards make friends.

In the backstage Oscars video, we first see Renee Zellweger whetting her whistle, Oscar in tow. That's when Bong Joon-ho and his collaborators and translator enter, ad the filmmaker instantly zeroes on his new friend Renee. The two lock eyes, and joke about "meeting again" at another one of these ceremonies. This time they both did quite well, and you can see how happy they are.

This cute moment actually happened at the engraving bar, which is no doubt why cameras were positioned there to film all the action. This is where the lucky winners hand over their statues, to have them properly engraved with their named on it. Lucky that Renee Zellweger got their first, because Bong Joon-ho had a ton of statues to get engraved by the end of the night. After all, Parasite won some of the biggest awards of the night. Zellweger even jokes about this in the video, saying she needed to "make room" for all of Parasite's trophies.

Buzz about Parasite had been steadily building since the movie premiered at film festivals like TIFF. The reviews were glowing, and it got a ton of nominations from the other ceremonies before getting a whopping four Oscar wins last night. It is the first South Korean film to ever receive an Academy Award nomination, and the first non-English to win the coveted Best Picture.

It should be interesting to see what type of projects come next for Renee Zellweger and Bong Joon-ho after these wins. Check back with CinemaBlend for all the details. And check our 2020 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Mild spoilers ahead for Parasite!

Awards Season has officially come to a close, as last night was the annual Academy Awards. The movie world's biggest night was full of twists and turns, and it was an especially strong one for director Bong Joon-ho's dark comedy Parasite. The South Korean film won a ton of major categories, including Best Picture, Best International Feature Film, and Best Director. This was a groundbreaking turn of events, one that should inspire casual moviegoers to check the movie out. Now we know how Bong Joon-ho managed to pull off Parasite's flood scene.

About halfway through Parasite, the Kim family successfully manages to manipulate the Parks and get hired as members of the staff. A massive rain storm creates a moment of chaos when the Parks return home, and the Kims eventually find their semi-basement apartment basically underwater. It's a fascinating juxtaposition in status, and highlights how desperate the situation is for the struggling family. Bong Joon-ho recently explained how they pulled this effect of, saying:

Well, that's one way of doing things. While the Kims' semi-basement and neighborhood felt real, it turns out it was entirely built on a water tank. This allowed for the flooding sequence to take place without damaging any actual buildings. Talk about world building.

Bong Joon-ho's comments come from a featurette Q&A that accompanies Parasite, and peels the curtain back on how the Oscar-winning director crafted his acclaimed movie. Parasite is very much a commentary on class, and the two family's homes could not be more different. The Kims were already doing poorly at the start of the film, but having their apartment completely flooded really raised the stakes.

There is one part of Bong Joon-ho's above quote that might have caused pause: the sewage water. Did he really subjected the cast of Parasite to deal with such nasty conditions? Rest easy, because he went on to clarify that aspect of his comment. As his translator said:

Well, that's a relief. Because while the sewage water of Parasite certainly looked disgusting, it wasn't nearly as nasty during film. Mainly because the sludge they were walking through actually had healing properties for their sin. That's movie magic, people.

After dominating the Academy Awards last night, there will likely be even more eyes on Parasite. It should be interesting to see what type of projects Bong Joon-ho brings to theaters next, and how this new type of acclaim helps him develop more movies.

Parasite is in theaters and available to stream now. Be sure to check out our 2020 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

“Hollywood” is often used as a synonym for the film industry at large, but its usage is arguably distorting. While it’s true that many of the most popular movies released in a given year originate from studios based in Los Angeles, filmmaking is a global art form, as filmmakers from every corner of the planet use it to express and broadcast their perceptions of the world.

Unfortunately, for as long as it’s existed, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has been almost exclusively focused on the Hollywood side of things… but that changed in a massive way tonight. The big winner at the 2020 Oscars was Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite, which will now go down in history as the first ever foreign language film to win Best Picture. Overall, the South Korean film won in four different categories – the list also including Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best International Film – and it’s exciting not only because of the glass ceiling that the victories shatter, but because the movie is entirely deserving of all its awards.

The buzz for Parasite has been going ever since last spring when it made its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, where it was named the unanimous winner of the esteemed Palme d'Or trophy. It took an extra minute to find its way in front of American audiences, not getting a limited release until October, but it’s experienced nothing but success since. Despite the fact that there are large portions of the general movie-going public that is scared off by subtitles, the film pulled in an impressive $35.5 million from ticket sales in North America, and grossed over $165 million worldwide.

There were a lot of people prior to tonight who were already well aware of the amazingness of Parasite, and saw the results of tonight as the movie being justly treated.

The secrets and twists of the film are definitely worth keeping quiet around those who have not yet seen it, but even the first act setup of the narrative is brilliant in its premise and execution. Written by Bong Joon-ho and Jin Won Han, the movie centers on the lower class Kim family, who struggle to survive living in a basement apartment. An opportunity arises when the teenage son, Ki-woo (Woo-sik Choi), is given the chance to take over a tutoring job from a friend, and he starts working at the home of the Park family – who are incredibly wealthy. One by one, Ki-woo’s sister (So-dam Park) and parents (Kang-ho Song and Hye-jin Jang) start to worm their way into the lives of the Parks as well… but where things go from there you couldn’t predict if you tried.

In many ways, Parasite is a perfect film to be the first foreign language Best Picture winner, as it’s an awesome example of how the language of cinema is universal. The events of the story entirely take place in South Korea, and yet anyone living in a hierarchal society will recognize the themes of class disparity and understand what it’s trying to say about its evil and ills. It’s a beautiful, clever, and hyper-intelligent piece of filmmaking, and very much a reflection of the times in which we are currently living.

Hopefully the win will ultimately have a massive impact on not only the films that are recognized and taken into consideration by members of the Academy for future ceremonies, but also wind up influencing and broadening the horizons of general movie-goers. After the success of Alfonso Cuarón’s Roma last year, which won three trophies but missed out on Best Picture, it feels like the Oscars have been building to this moment, and Parasite is a work entirely deserving of the honor. If you’ve already seen it, celebrate its win by watching it again (it’s even better on rewatch), and if you haven’t had the pleasure, you should do yourself a favor and rectify that situation as soon as possible.

While not exactly gender-diverse, this year’s race for Best Picture at the Academy Awards is an interesting one. In addition to there being an interesting mix of genres represented in the films up for the prize, the 2020 class has filmmakers who have taken very different paths to where they are today. It’s a mix of legends and first-time nominees, and the result is that it’s hard to precisely predict who will end up walking away with the trophy.

We here at CinemaBlend have our own thoughts on the proceedings, and in recent weeks members of our staff have been letting their voices be heard by ranking the nominees in all of the major Oscar categories. Votes were only cast by those who saw every film in a given category, and each vote ranked the five nominees from most to least deserving (a "1" being the best, and a "5" being the lowest). Those scores have been averaged, and those averages have generated the order you see below.

#5. Todd Phillips, Joker

Average Rank: 4.5789474

If you time traveled to 2010 and told random movie fans that Todd Phillips would one day be up for Best Director at the Oscars, it would probably inspire a fair bit of laughter. After all, ten years ago Phillips was best known for making broad comedies like Old School, Road Trip, and The Hangover, which weren’t exactly movies sending out awards screeners. That being said, Phillips’ profile as a filmmaker has changed a great deal in recent years, and Joker is excellent evidence of that.

Phillips had a chance to express the deepest parts of his dark sensibilities with the DC Comics adaptation, and what he has crafted is a disturbing and impressively atmospheric feature unlike any comic book movie we’ve seen before. The feeling that you need to take a shower after watching Joker is evidence of its effectiveness, as the film gets under your skin in all the ways that it should.

#4. Martin Scorsese, The Irishman

Average Rank: 3.8947368

The Irishman is a project that has been with Martin Scorsese for years – long imagined as a film that would not only reunite him with fellow legends Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci, but also give him his first opportunity to work with Al Pacino. But the director had to bide his time, waiting for the industry to catch up with vision of what the movie could be. It took more than a decade for it to get done, but what he accomplished with the project is truly extraordinary.

There are 20-year-old directors to struggle to manage the reins of an 80 minute comedy, but the 77-year-old Martin Scorsese builds The Irishman in all of its three-and-a-half hour glory like a sculptor with a scalpel, designing one of the most incredible works he’s ever done.  It’s a tremendous blend of classic and modern cinema techniques, and a remarkable journey that only Scorsese could deliver.

#3. Bong Joon-ho, Parasite

Average Rank: 2.2105263

This is the first year that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have recognized the work of Bong Joon-ho, but the reality is that the filmmaker has been delivering extraordinary work for years. Each of his movies explores new genre and theme, but all of his work is marked by fantastic camerawork and sharp commentary. One could make a strong argument that the director’s work has been overlooked by the Academy before, but at the very least that’s not happening this year with what is his best work to date.

Parasite is a mind-blower of craftsmanship, with every scene delicately building the escalating plot, the narrative striking many different tones, and it upending expectations each step of the way. It’s a shocking and brutal examination of class warfare with no detail left overlooked, and an incredible achievement for Bong Joon-ho as a director. In short, it was ranked as CineamBlend’s number one film of 2019 for a reason.

#2. Quentin Tarantino, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood

Average Rank: 2.2105263

Quentin Tarantino’s work has changed a great deal over the course of his career. When he first started in the 1990s he earned acclaim for his tremendous contributions to the crime genre, but since the start of the 21st century, and the release of Kill Bill, his films have become far more experimental. An extension of this, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood is unlike any movie that he’s ever made, but infused with all the greatest elements of his sensibilities, it easily ranks as one of his greatest contributions to cinema.

The statistical tie between Tarantino and Bong Joon-ho in the rankings was broken by the former having more #1 votes (six versus four), and he finishes here higher than he did in our vote for Best Original Screenplay, where Once Upon A Time In Hollywood finished in third. Still, while our staff didn’t deliver it the ballots for the Best Director trophy, there is a lot of love here at CinemaBlend for Tarantino’s epic journey through Los Angeles in 1969.

#1. Sam Mendes, 1917

Average Rank: 2.1052632

Making a film is tremendously hard work. It involves coordinating hundreds of people, executing a plan that is guaranteed to change along the way, and managing input from a wide variety of sources, all while dealing with the immense pressure that comes from the money invested in the project. To purposefully make the whole process infinitely harder by attempting something as intrepid as capturing the feeling of everything being in a single shot is, on paper, a crazy thing to do – but that just emphasizes the magnificence of what Sam Mendes has accomplished with 1917.

There is an incredible urgency added to the plot of the film through its stylistic choices, and Mendes’ collaboration with cinematographer Roger Deakins has resulted in one of the most audacious and impressive war movies of all time. You can’t help but marvel at the technical achievement that’s seen in the final product on the big screen, but that gets taken to the next level when you take into consideration the level of synchronization that was necessary to achieve everything. It’s a remarkable accomplishment, and one that the CinemaBlend team feels makes Sam Mendes deserving of the 2020 Oscar for Best Director.

As for who will actually win the award, we won’t find that out until tomorrow night when the Academy Awards are broadcast around the globe. We have tons more coverage of the event coming your way, so stay tuned, and be on the lookout for more of our rankings of the Oscar nominees in the top categories.

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Bong Joon-ho creates a multi-genre movie experience with Parasite, a film that grabs the audience from the very first frame and doesn’t let go even after the credits begin to roll. Parasite has become the surprise international hit of 2019, and one of the best films of the last decade. The Academy has nominated Bong Joon-ho’s masterpiece for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best International Feature Film, and Best Directing-this is the first time the Academy has nominated a film from South Korea in these categories. Parasite could become the first film from South Korea to take home Oscars for Best Picture and Best International Feature Film.

Parasite has been gaining momentum ever since its May 2019 Cannes Film Festival debut. There, it became the first Korean film to win the prestigious Palme d’Or award. Parasite was also the first film since 2013’s Blue is the Warmest Color to win it by a unanimous vote. After winning the Palme d’Or, the film went on to become the third highest grossing film of all-time in South Korea with $113 million worldwide. In January 2020, Parasite took home the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film, where Bong Joon-ho made sure to give English-speaking audiences some much needed advice about expanding their film horizons. On February 2, Bong Joon-ho and Parasite take on the British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs) with four nominations including Best Director and Best Film.

Parasite follows two Seoul families, the Kim and Park family. The Kims are barely above the poverty level and they have very little ambition to rise above it. Through their natural scheming abilities, they find ways to survive their situation. The Parks are a wealthy family who live a luxurious life, especially compared to the Kim family. Ki-woo (Choi Woo-shik) lucks out and obtains a job working as a tutor for the Park family daughter, Da-hye (Jung Ji-so). He soon develops a plan to ensure that his entire family gets a job working for the Parks. The Kim family must then pretend not to know each other. Parasite marks the fifth collaboration between Bong Joon-ho and Song Kang-ho, who plays the Kim father in Parasite. Bong Joon-ho also co-wrote Parasite with his Snowpiercer production assistant Han Jin-won. Parasite is a must-see movie this award season. Those seeking to find it, just have to know where to look.

Is Parasite Available To Stream Yet?

Parasite became available to purchase to stream on January 14. Parasite can be bought on FandangoNow, Amazon Prime Video, Vudu, Google Play, and other video platforms. All of these platforms currently offer the film for $14.99 and in various video qualities, including HD, SD, or 4K UHD. For those not willing to commit to buying the film yet, Parasite is still showing in many theaters, and it will be part of AMC theaters’ annual Best Picture showcase on February 1 and February 8. Purchase Parasite to stream HERE.

When Will Parasite Be Available On DVD And Blu-ray?

Parasite is available on DVD and Blu-ray on January 28. The DVD and Blu-ray prices will range from about $18 to about $23. As stated above, for those who want to see it before the physical copies are available, buy it to stream on iTunes, Amazon Prime Video, and other streaming services. Preorder the DVD or Blu-ray of Parasite HERE.

When Will Parasite Be Available To Rent On VOD?

Parasite will also be available to rent on VOD on January 28. Parasite renting options will then become available on various video services and devices, like Amazon Prime Video, iTunes, and Vudu.

Are Any Of Bong Joon-ho’s Other Movies Available To Stream?

Since 1997, Bong Joon-ho has made eleven feature films as a writer, director, or producer. Eight of them are available to stream in addition to Parasite.

Barking Dogs Never Bite

Bong Jong-ho’s directorial debut, 2000’s Barking Dogs Never Bite is available to stream. It’s on the free streaming service Tubi, and it is available to purchase or rent on Amazon Prime Video. Barking Dogs Never Bite is about an unemployed grad student, his wife, and the barking dog that haunts them. Stream Barking Dogs Never Bite HERE.

Memories Of Murder

Memories of Murder is a crime drama based on South Korea’s first documented serial killer, who had a reign of terror from 1986 to 1991. It’s Song Kang-ho and Bong Joon-ho’s first film collaboration. Memories of Murder is available on iTunes. Stream it HERE.

Antarctic Journal

Bong Joon-ho received writing credit on Antarctic Journal, a psychological thriller and horror film about a Korean team’s intense mission to Antarctica. Antarctic Journal is available to stream for free on Tubi. Stream Antarctic Journal HERE.

The Host

2006’s The Host is a creature film about what happens when careless American military personnel dump chemicals into a South Korean river. Their actions result in a water monster and an abducted daughter. The Host is available to stream for free on Tubi, and available to purchase or rent on various video platforms, including Amazon Prime Video. Stream Bong Joon-ho’s The Host HERE.

Mother

Mother follows a mother (Kim Hye-ja) who takes the law into her own hands after a sloppy murder investigation results in her son (Won Bin) being falsely accused of the crime. Mother is available to purchase and rent on various video on demand platforms, including Amazon Prime Video. Stream Mother HERE.

Snowpiercer

Snowpiercer and Okja are both available to stream on Netflix. Snowpiercer follows a group of global passengers aboard the Snowpiercer train.Chris Evans, Song Kang-ho, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell, and Octavia Spencer star. It’s Bong Joon-ho’s English language debut. Stream Snowpiercer HERE.

Okja

Okja is a Netflix original movie that has an ensemble cast that includes Tilda Swinton, Lily Collins, Steven Yeun, Ahn Seo-hyun, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Choi Woo-shik. Okja is about a girl and her genetically modified super pig. Stream Okja HERE.

Sea Fog

Bong Joon-ho wrote and produced Sea Fog, a story about what happens when an attempt to smuggle Chinese immigrants into Korea goes very wrong. Sea Fog is available for free on Tubi and available to rent or purchase on most major video platforms. Stream Sea Fog HERE.

There is an abundance of Bong Joon-ho films available to stream (and many of them for free). This makes it easy for anyone who wants to watch Bong Joon-ho’s body of work before or after viewing Parasite. There will be plenty of Parasite and Bong-Joon-ho coming soon with his plans to expand the film’s universe.

Bong Joon-ho has been making waves on the awards circuit already in 2020 thanks to some Golden Globes wins and now some Academy Award nominations for Parasite, and the news that the film would become a limited series at HBO met with mixed reactions from the internet. For some, the film is perfect as is and doesn't need a TV show. For others, the show has the potential to be great. Now, the Parasite director has shared that the show will expand on stories from the movie.

The Parasite limited series hails from Bong Joon-ho himself as well as Succession's Adam McKay. As Succession won some of the biggest TV categories at the 2020 Golden Globes, this could be a winning team to bring Parasite to the small screen. Speaking about turning the film into a limited series, Bong said this:

The Parasite TV series won't be sequel to the story already told with so much success on the big screen, but will rather "expand" on what couldn't make it into the movie. Parasite's run time is a little over two hours, whereas a limited series will afford Bong Joon-ho, Adam McKay, and the production team considerably more time to tell the story. Even if it's one of HBO's shorter limited series, a la Helen Mirren's four-part 2019 mini Catherine the Great, the TV production of Parasite would surely run longer than the film.

While The Irishman is an example of a movie with a runtime rivaling that of some series, few films have upward of three hours to tell its story. Parasite was clearly a hit without needing more hours of content, but who's to say that the limited series won't be at least as satisfying as the film? Personally, I can think of more than one movie that would have been improved if it had been produced as a limited series rather than a movie with less time to tell stories.

Bong Joon-ho went on in his comments to Variety to explain his goal with the Parasite limited series:

A high quality limited series that is more of what was great about Parasite with the man who brought Parasite to the big screen in the first place could be great, right? Still, the series will undoubtedly have some key differences from the film, and Bong Joon-ho has stated that he and Adam McKay haven't yet decided if it will be an English language adaptation or set in South Korea, as the film was.

Considering some of Bong Joon-ho's comments about subtitles at the Golden Globes, it would be fitting if the limited series is set in South Korea, but it wouldn't be shocking for an HBO project to be produced in English. Only time will tell. For now, you can always look forward to streaming Parasite (along with 10 other Oscar nominees) ahead of the 2020 Academy Awards in February.

Parasite just won the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film this past weekend, and the buzz surrounding the movie has recently taken a new turn. A detour into television, that is. As you probably suspected, the internet has an opinion on the film becoming a TV show, and it's not great. First, some context.

News recently broke that negotiations had begun with HBO for Bong Joon-ho’s critically acclaimed movie, Parasite, to be adapted into a limited series for the premium cabler, per Deadline. The series would be based on the film. Further details regarding the plot and other elements relating to the nature of the show, have not been revealed yet. And, this has led to lots of open questions for the internet to speculate on.

Parasite’s director, Bong Joon-ho, and Succession producer Adam McKay, are set to team on the project for HBO. This deal was struck after Bong Joon-ho was reportedly courted by Netflix. The duo will be collaborating on the television adaptation with Parasite’s backing studio CJ Entertainment, McKay’s Hyperobject Industries, and Dooho Choi’s Kate Street Picture Company. Unfortunately, the internet is largely against the Parasite series.

A Change.org petition has already been launched in hopes of giving voice to those who do not want a series based on 2019’s highest-grossing foreign film in the United States. The Parasite TV show has not aired yet, but it already has a petition! Check it out:

The person who posted the petition actually seems a little bit blasé about it with their "LMAO," but others have not been so pleasant about a Parasite show:

Twitter has been home to some reactions that were more enthusiastic over the Parasite TV show. While some are content with leaving the movie’s story where it ended and not continuing the beloved film, others are more open to seeing what happens with it. One commentator brought up a recent adaption and hit show to make their point. Check it out:

Bong Joon-ho's involvement is a vital component that series has in its corner. As for Watchmen, it had a well-received first season on HBO. Meanwhile, the HBO drama Succession is heading into Season 3 with more support behind it than ever. Still, others are not as enthused by the prospect of a Parasite TV show, and, for a very good reason if you're a fan of the film:

It's still way too soon to tell what HBO's Parasite will have in store for viewers, but there was a Twitter user ready to embrace the bright side to the news, even though this person clearly isn't totally on board:

More films from Bong Joon-ho are definitely a great thing for fans to look forward to. The future is looking fantastic for the director, who has weighed in on superhero movies. Following Parasite’s Golden Globe win, all eyes are on the breakout hit and its awards season run. The Oscar nominations are right around the corner!

The internet will have to wait and see what happens with the Parasite TV show. It is still in the early stages, and as more details are revealed, opinions may swing any number of directions. Television is an ever-growing canvas for creatives to work their magic!

Considering the early stages of the project, there is currently no premiere date for the Parasite series on HBO. While you await one, you can check out this winter’s premieres.

Following its debut at the Cannes Film Festival last fall, Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite generated a massive wave of buzz… and that buzz is still flowing today just as strongly as it was back then. The proof of this is all of the chatter surrounding the movie during this awards season, which notably just resulted in the film winning the Best Foreign Language Film award at the 2020 Golden Globes.

The movie’s writer/director took the stage to accept his trophy, and in coordination with his translator, he delivered an awesome message to the movie-going public about the exploration and appreciation of films that don’t feature English as the primary language. Speaking through his translator, Bong Joon-ho said,

To complete his time on stage, Bong Joon-ho said the last line of his brief speech in English himself, saying about his colleagues and the audience,

As far as that last bit is concerned, Parasite is actually a phenomenal example. The film is notably a satire that takes aim at class and wealth disparity, and while it is a story that is set in South Korea, and features Korean character speaking Korean, the messages that it gets across about modern society are applicable in just about every developed nation. Cinema is an artform that brings us all together in understanding, because the reality is that none of us are really all that different.

In the award winning film, Woo-sik Choi, So-dam Park, Kang-ho Song, and Hye-jin Jang star as a lower class family that begins to infiltrate the world of an upper-class household, starting with the son, Ki-woo, getting a job as an English tutor for one of the children. Just as you think you have Parasite all figured out, however, the story takes a sharp left turn that no movie-goer in the world could ever predict.

It’s an incredible piece of work, and well deserving of not only its new Golden Globe trophy, but also the many others it’s been collecting, and will continue to collect, as this year’s award season continues. It should be noted that the win is also history making, as the movie is the first South Korean entry to win an award from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

For those of you who haven’t had the experience of watching Parasite yet, and those of you who are excited to watch it again, the film is now available on various OnDemand platforms and as a digital rental, and is also out on Blu-ray and DVD. If you’re in the latter group, I would absolutely recommend seeing it as quickly as possible, as the chatter surrounding this movie most definitely isn’t going away any time soon, and it’s really best to go into the plot knowing as little about it as possible.

We’ve only just begun our Golden Globes coverage, so stay tuned here on CinemaBlend for more updates!

With his most recent run of movies, writer/director Bong Joon-ho has seen his reach significantly expand. While he first earned the attention of cinephiles with his fantastic and thrilling Korean monster movie The Host in 2006, more recent works, namely Snowpiercer and Okja, have being English-language movies that employed Western stars, and were built in part to find a broader audience.

That in mind, his latest film, Parasite, is a homecoming of sorts, the narrative set in contemporary South Korea – and it also happens to be arguably be his greatest work to date. Taking on the disturbingly universal issue of class disparity, the filmmaker has crafted not just a brilliantly sharp and cutting satire, but also what unfurls as a shocking and dramatic thriller with more than a few surprises up its sleeve.

Co-written by Bong Joon-ho and Jin Won Han, Parasite centers on the Kim family (Woo-sik Choi, So-dam Park, Kang-ho Song, and Hye-jin Jang) – who live in relative destitution in a semi-basement apartment. When they’re not scrounging around desperately seeking stolen Wi-Fi, or trying to make ends meet by folding cardboard pizza boxes, they’re shooing away drunks who like to piss right outside their living room window. They are not even on the bottom rung; they are the rubber feet that keep the ladder steady.

What they lack in money they make up for in unity and cleverness, however, and they are able to quickly take advantage of a surprise opportunity that lands in their collective lap. The son, Ki-woo, is recommended by his friend (Park Seo-joon) as a tutor for the teenage daughter of the wealthy Park family (Ji-so Jung), and it turns out to be the perfect foot in the door. With the matriarch of the Parks (Cho Yeo-jeong) being naïve and overly trusting, and the patriarch (Lee Sun-kyun) a bit disconnected due to his busy career, the Kims manage to infiltrate the upper class with forgery and manipulation.

Just as the parasitic clan begins to celebrate their massive victory, though, a never-could-have-possibly-been-predicted wrench gets thrown into the gears that threatens to dismantle the entire con job.

If it isn’t obvious from the vibe of this review thus far, Parasite is an experience where all of the surprises are best revealed as you watch them all play out in a dark theater – so don’t read the lack of vivid details as suggesting that there isn’t much to say. The total opposite is actually the case, as the second half of the movie spirals into fascinating places that highlight the very different ways that people view the world based on the extreme perspectives provided by class.

What can be said in a spoiler-free environment is that the cleverness of the Kim family is a direct reflection of the cleverness of the filmmakers, with each new stage in the story offering a new wave of intelligence and wit as the central characters further dig in their claws. While it all starts with Ki-woo having his sister, Ki-jung, use her Photoshop skills to give him credentials he doesn’t have, everything escalates from there as the sibling and their parents find their own ways to become a part of the Park household. It’s smart writing that all by itself generates huge smiles and big laughs – and then the wonderful performances and fantastic visuals also add to that tonal aspect of the movie.

Of course, casting has a tremendous influence, and the entire ensemble is fantastic. Young stars Woo-sik Choi and So-dam Park are particularly wonderful and charismatic, expertly wrapping the Parks around their fingers – but together with Kang-ho Song and Hye-jin Jang as their parents there is also an excellent innocence that they project as a family unit, even when they are acting as vicious metaphorical wolves ready to tear apart the helpless herd of sheep that are the Kims.

As incredibly funny as Parasite can be, though, it’s also satire that recognizes the necessity in hitting the audience with the hard truth about the reality of the subject matter being tackled, and the movie does so with expertly crafted shifts in tone that intensely elevates the material to another level. In the same spirit in which its able to make you chuckle, it’s also able to drop your jaw, particularly as things escalate towards the intense third act climax.

With a brilliant eye for detail, and a remarkable ear for tone, Bong Joon-ho has firmly established himself as one of the most gifted active filmmakers, and Parasite is in all aspects a legacy-builder. Every ounce of buzz its earned since its award-winning debut at the Cannes Film Festival is impressively earned, and sleeping on it during a season that is becoming overloaded with great features would be a serious mistake.

Even before its recent Netflix release, Bong Joon-ho's Okja proved to be highly controversial. A landmark collaboration between South Korea and the United States, the film made waves with its unorthodox release schedule -- which saw it debut in theaters and on Netflix simultaneously. That controversy spilled into the movie's release, as Okja's finale proved to be a downer for many members of the audience. However, that was not always the case, as the original first draft for the film's finale apparently toyed with the possibility of a much more upbeat ending.

A new report from HuffPost indicates that far more super pigs were initially going to survive the events of Okja. In the final version of the film, Mija manages to save the titular beast from the Mirando Corporation, but the rest of the animals ultimately find themselves led to a mass slaughter. By contrast, an earlier draft of the story involved the Animal Liberation Front successfully infiltrating the Mirando Corporation and taking the company down from the inside -- thus putting an end to the slaughter of the pigs. In the end, there were two main reasons why Bong Joon-ho opted out of this ending. First, he wanted to keep the focus of the film's narrative specifically on Okja, and expanding to such a big finale would've betrayed that narrative. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, he also felt that it would've been "too cartoonish" to have a master plan like that go off without a hitch.

Okja's ending seems to show a pattern of "realistic" endings for Bong Joon-ho's more outlandish projects. Specifically, his 2014 sci-fi thriller Snowpiercer similarly ends on an incredibly dark note, but one that is not entirely devoid of hope in the grand scheme of things. We won't spoil anything if you haven't seen the film, but just know that it walks a fine line between pure pessimism and optimism.

Obviously, your mileage may vary with regards to how effective you find this storytelling technique, but there's a very clear argument to be made that it is a unique way for Bong Joon-ho to instill the morals of his stories. He does not necessarily spoon-feed a happy ending to his audiences, but he leaves them with enough hope to hammer home the themes that he aims for. Considering how both Snowpiercer and Okja ultimately turned out, we can't say that we blame him.

Okja is now available to stream on Netflix. If you are on the lookout for more information concerning the rest of this year's major film releases, make sure to take a look at CinemaBlend's comprehensive 2017 movie premiere guide and fill out your moviegoing calendars accordingly! You can also see what else is coming to Netflix later this year in our premiere schedule for the streaming service.

The Weinstein Company does have some experience releasing edited versions of their films to American audiences, so it was more disappointing than surprising when we learned that they were going to be cutting footage from Bong Joon-ho’s upcoming apocalyptic-future film Snowpiercer. Insinuations that Americans are too dumb to grasp the South Korean edit really stings. Fortunately, Bong has allayed some fears by revealing at a recent press event (via XinMSN) that he is involved with putting the American version together - so at least it wasn’t edited down by some studio hack. It still feels like putting a Band-Aid on a bullet wound, but it’s something.

“I came here after editing the American version,” the filmmaker said, while speaking about his overseas round of Snowpiercer premieres. “I’ve never produced a new version for overseas premieres, and this is the first time I’m making a new version.” All three of those sentences make it pretty clear that he is taking full responsibility for the version the U.S. will be seeing.

Not only that, but the damage may be less severe than the 20-minute beheading that was initially reported. “Weinstein is actually being pretty soft towards editing, probably because it’s noticed now critics have praised the film and know how angry movie fans get over new edits," he said. "They even asked me which parts I want to include in the film.”

People may have sounded a little petty complaining about only getting a trimmed-down version in the U.S., but at lease the voices were heard - if not fully embraced. Bong gets nearly all of the credit, of course, for continuing to create films that are worth making such a fuss over, but film fans get a pat on the back for speaking so loudly as well.

The film is set on a speeding, perpetual motion-powered train called the Snowpiercer that runs non-stop through all parts of a world following the beginning of a man-made Ice Age. As time passes, those inside the train fall into a class system. The lower class riders in the back of the train start a revolution to take control of the engine and drama ensues. The movie stars Chris Evans, John Hurt, Ed Harris, Octavia Spencer, Ewen Bremner, Song Kang-ho, Go Ah-sung, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell and Alison Pill.

Unfortunately, there still isn’t a release date set for the U.S., though I assume that’s coming soon if the re-edit is completed. The way it’s looking, we’ll end up seeing the Bong-less The Host 2 before Snowpiercer. Below is the international version of the trailer:

The Weinstein Company only recently ended their mini-feud with Warner Bros. over the title of their upcoming biopic Lee Daniels’ The Butler, but the studio is already back in the spotlight thanks to their plans to edit the ever-loving shit out of Bong Joon-ho’s Snowpiercer before it can be seen in any of the English-speaking countries where they’re distributing it. While I can’t currently think of a legitimate reason for these cuts to be made, TwitchFilm reports the that the Weinsteins are essentially doing it because they think some Americans are too stupid to understand the film. Thanks, bros. We really appreciate that one.

Film critic and festival programmer Tony Rayns told the site, “TWC people have told Bong that their aim is to make sure the film ‘will be understood by audiences in Iowa…and Oklahoma.” He goes on to say, “Leaving aside the issue of what Weinstein thinks of its audience, it seems to say the least anomalous that the rest of the English-speaking world has to be dragged down to the presumed level of American mid-west hicks.” I mean, perhaps it’s progressive thinking for TWC to assume our country’s most backwoods citizens are even aware of the Korean filmmaker or his films, but that doesn’t mean they can’t grasp the films themselves.

Beyond smashing Korean box office records, Snowpiercer has received very positive early reviews from outlets like TwitchFilm, The Hollywood Reporter, and Variety - all of which are run by non-invalid English-speaking people – yet TWC wants to butcher 20 minutes from the film, knocking its story-heavy 126 minute runtime down to a more action-oriented 106 mins.

Rayns spoke with Bong at the Seoul premiere of the film on July 29th and learned that character development would take the brunt of the edits, and that a hackneyed detail-spewing voiceover would be inserted for both the opening and the ending of the film. Granted, Snowpiercer has a rich backstory that could be a film all on its own, but it doesn’t need to be spelled out for anyone. Bong didn’t become a highly acclaimed filmmaker by making movies about cardboard cutouts. This is a movie that deals with a bullet train populated by all levels of social class, and how that hierarchy gets undermined by some of its passengers. I guess since there aren’t any speeding trains in Oklahoma so they’d never be able to understand what's going on in the movie... or something.

The UK and possibly Australia are looking into protesting the needless edits for their countries, but it looks like Americans are just going to have to wait to see the complete film on Blu-ray many months from now. Disgusting.

Try not to get confused by the film’s trailer below, and let us know in the comments just how insulted this makes you. Maybe send an email to TWC as well.

Notice the “Personal Achievement/Filmography: Scream Awards Best Superhero” at the bottom of Evans’ passport.

Sure, the extremely high-profile Oblivion and Star Trek Into Darkness are probably the most anticipated science fiction films coming this year, but everyone kind of knows what to expect from both of these films, regardless of the secrecy they’re clouded in. Arguably more exciting for those looking for something outside the box is Snowpiercer, the English-language debut from South Korean director Joon-ho Bong, who gave audiences the rollicking good time that was the creature feature The Host. But other than a poster and some concept art, visuals for the film have been largely absent. Until now, of course.

The first batch of clever promotional material that Snowpiercer has to offer comes in the form of passports for its miserable looking characters, and they perfectly portray the dark, dreary and mysterious tone the film seems to exude.

Snowpiercertakes place in a near-future where an environmentally-damaged Earth is in the midst of an Ice Age, and the planet’s remaining survivors are all riders on a speeding train powered by perpetual motion. One would hope that during such an ordeal, humanity would come together as one, and the need for such xenophobic identification as passports would be outdated. But the film is probably closer to the truth, and the train’s cars are set up as a class system, keeping everyone separated. Take a look at a few more below, and see if you get as amped up as I am to see Ewan Bremner’s “Carrot Top/Flava Flav” combo in action.

It’s not as if the visual clues from the film stills don’t make the class separation obvious, but the passports do contain at least those clues, telling us the poor decrepit-looking folks are in the tail section, while Tilda Swinton’s fancy ass is in the front. There’s also a prison section and an engine room, where Ed Harris hides in the shadows. The rest of the passports can be seen here. Thanks to Movies.com for I.D.ing these great images.

Snowpiercer also stars Jamie Bell, John Hurt, Ko Asung and Octavia Spencer. Though The Weinstein Company owns the theatrical rights, they’ve been very tight-lipped about a release date. Hope it happens before the next ice age.

Here's Bong's own passport, just because.

The cast of Bong Joon-ho's post-apocalyptic thriller Snow Piercer has grown by one more notable U.K. actor. Ewen Bremner, best-known for playing the sweet but simple Spud in Trainspotting, has just signed on, joining an impressive ensemble that already includes the beguiling Tilda Swinton, the engaging Jamie Bell, and the legendary John Hurt.

Snow Piercer will mark Joon-ho's English-language debut, and the writer-director behind the chilling allegorical monster tale The Host and the haunting crime-drama Mother has had no trouble snagging top notch talent. Aside from the great performers he's garnered from Great Britain, Joon-ho has also scored Captain America: The First Avenger star Chris Evans, and Oscar-winner Octavia Spencer as well as South Korean movie star Kang-ho Song to star in his train-set thriller inspired by the French graphic novel Le Transperceneige.

In the film, a train called Snow Piercer makes its way through an enveloping Ice Age while the contentious survivors on board fall into an explosive class warfare. Details on what roles these extraordinary actors will take on have been scarce, but Variety reveals that Bremner will play "a father who joins forces with Evans' character to save his kidnapped son." Could this mean that Bremner will play Spencer's husband, as she's been assigned a role as a mother who reluctantly joins the revolt to save her son?

As I'm admittedly unfamiliar with the source material, it's hard for me to say at this point where the class lines will fall. However, I do anticipate that Swinton's steely demeanor will cast her in the upper class, and suspect that Captain America will be on the side of the have-nots, which means Bremner would follow suit. Beyond that it becomes harder to pick who could be on what side of the class divide. Bell made his name on his portrayal of a blue-collar kid in Billy Elliot, but could well play a posh young man, and Hurt, as a wizened white man, could reasonably be typecast on either end of the conflict. Spencer, however, has shown such an overwhelming affability that I suspect Joon-ho will have her in a hero role, likely fighting alongside Evans. Hopefully more definitive details will emerge as the film nears its fast-approaching shoot date.

Production on Snow Piercer is set to begin in the coming weeks.

Back when word of Snow Piercer first arose along with casting news that Captain America: The First Avenger star Chris Evans was in talks, I had wagered that a long line of stars were sure to pursue a part in Bong Joon-ho's much-anticipated English-language debut. Since then, the South Korean director, who drew international acclaim with his allegorical monster movie The Host and his haunting thriller Mother, has attracted some spectacular talent to his ensemble drama, including BAFTA-winner Jamie Bell, Oscar-nominee John Hurt and Oscar-winner Tilda Swinton. With each new casting announcement Bong and his producer Chan-wook Park (Oldboy) have elicited giddy squeals from movie fans that eagerly await this sure-to-sizzle thriller.

And just when we thought this cast couldn't get any better, THR reveals that Octavia Spencer, the current frontrunner for the Best Supporting Actress Oscar, has just signed on to Snow Piercer. She'll join the production at the end of April, after her work on Diablo Cody's untitled directorial debut wraps.

Inspired by the 1970s French graphic novel Le Transperceneige, Snow Piercer centers on an eponymous train that houses the last known survivors of a global warming-induced Ice Age. Trapped together in perpetuity, always traveling but getting nowhere, the passengers aboard Snow Piercer eventually develop an unjust class system that soon spurs talk of revolt. Spencer is set to play a mother who enters the fray of rebellion to save her son. There's no word yet on who Evans, Bell, Hurt and Swinton will play, but I have to say it doesn't matter. With this much talent on one production, Snow Piercer seems guaranteed to be absolutely riveting.

Tell us who else you'd like to see join this sci-fi drama in comments.

Bong Joon-ho's train-set thriller Snow Piercer continues to gain momentum with news that legendary English actor John Hurt has joined the cast that already includes Captain America: The First Avenger star Chris Evans and internationally heralded chameleon Tilda Swinton. It's little wonder Joon-ho's English-language debut is drawing so much star-power, as the South Korean writer-director and his collaborator and producer Park Chan-wook have each won worldwide admiration and accolades for their tautly-paced, character-driven dramas, Mother and Oldboy respectively. For his part, Hurt, who has just completed work on the family-drama Jayne Mansfield's Car, admitted his delight in being involved with Snow Piercer with a cheeky statement to The Telegraph, saying:

All kidding aside, Snow Piercer is already set to be one of the most-anticipated films of 2013 as it continues to collect lauded talent from all around the globe. Aside from Evans, Hurt, and Swinton, The Adventures of Tintin's Jamie Bell is in talks to co-star, and South Korean actor Song Kang-ho, who starred in Joon-ho's The Host and Chan-wook's Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, is also expected to make an appearance. As the drama centers on a wasteland-traversing train packed tight with a diverse batch of travelers, there's no knowing who might be tapped next to board. It's literally a world of tantalizing possibilities and Joon-ho seems to have his pick of talent. Plus, a script polish from Before the Devil Knows You're Dead scribe Kelly Masterson doesn't hurt his chances with American actors.

Snow Piercer is slated to begin production in March, so more casting news should break soon.

Chris Evans has landed a couple of co-stars. Earlier this week it was reported that the Captain America: The First Avenger star could sign on for the newest film from The Host writer-director Bong Joon-ho and today Variety has learned that two very high profile names from this year's Oscar race are also in talks to board the movie.

Tilda Swinton and Jamie Bell are now in talks for Snow Piercer, a project that also has the distinction of having Chan-wook Park attached as a producer. The movie is set in a world that is covered in ice and snow and follows a group of passengers on a train that must help each other in order to survive. While she is seemingly always in the Oscar race in some capacity or another, this year Swinton has earned high marks and incredibly buzz for her performance in We Need To Talk About Kevin, while Bell was the star of The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn, which is currently considered the frontrunner in the Best Animated Feature category at the Academy Awards. The film will be the first American film that Bong Joon-ho has directed and has him following in Park's footsteps (the director recently completed production on Stocker, starring Mia Wasikowska, Nicole Kidman, Matthew Goode and Dermot Mulroney). The trade doesn't mention when the project will go into production.

This project is really gaining steam fast. Evans has proven that he can give a great performance when given a solid script and character, but Swinton and Bell are just icing on the cake. This will be one to be on the lookout for.

I’ll get the sad part of this story out of the way right now... this is just a rumor. As much as we’d love to know for sure that visionary directors Bong Joon-Ho and J.J. Abrams are joining forces, /film has provided just a hushed whisper hope that this will actually go down. No solid evidence just yet.

According to their source, /film is reporting that Bong and Abrams have had “extensive” meetings in Korea about a possible collaboration in the near future. Why would this be very exciting, you ask? Because both directors are forces to be reckoned with, each with a wildly different visual style, but a common immense ability to reel a viewer deeply into a story as intimate as something like Bong’s Mother, or as vast as Abrams’ Star Trek. There’s no talk yet of what exactly the movie will be and both film makers have taken on many genres making it difficult to hypothesize. My guess though? There’ll be a monster involved.

Abrams would be producing while Bong directs, a set up that we know works as proven by Cloverfield which was directed by Matt Reeves and is shockingly similar to Bong’s Korean masterpiece The Host. If you watch these movies back to back you’ll know why nerds across the web are so excited for this pairing.

J.J.’s mass appeal and Bong’s ability to craft a thrilling, character-driven epic will produce what can only be expected to be an instant favorite. All we can do at this point is encourage their pairing by writing about it and waiting with all our fingers and toes crossed. In the mean time, if you haven’t seen The Host you can scope it out instantly on Netflix.