Bong Joon-ho expands on the message of Mickey 17 starring Robert Pattinson

Robert Pattinson's Mickey 17 is one of the most awaited films of the year as fans will see the actor in a thriller movie after quite a while as he teams up with Parasite director Bong Joon-ho. The film centers on an expendable who is out on deadly missions and keeps getting resurrected every time he faces death. Pattinson will be playing a dual role as the two of the titular characters- Mickey 17 and 18.

Although the film is fictional, Joon-ho briefed about the inspiration behind the film and how it portrays the working conditions that workers in Korea face. As reported by the South China Morning Post, the director said,

“In Mickey 17, we see people who assign all dangerous, potentially fatal tasks to a single Mickey without feeling any guilt. In Korea, we’ve had people die because of accidents in industrial sites. I’m not sure how much working conditions have improved, but someone else is now doing those jobs. In the movie, they repeat that to one Mickey. There’s a sadness that comes from that. If I had to summarise this situation in one word, it would be ‘expendable’.”

He then added,

“Mickey faces harsh conditions and contempt but at the end of the film he remains unbroken. That’s the message I wanted to convey. I hope it offers a small consolation to those who watch the film.”

The film premiered at the Berlin Film Festival but was not a part of any competitions and simply decided to join the screening section. This was Joon-ho's decision as he talked about how he wanted to give other films a chance.

“This year’s Berlin International Film Festival also requested Mickey 17 for the competition section, but I did not want anything more in terms of awards. We wanted to give other works a chance in the competition section, so we said we’d like to screen this film in the non-competitive gala.”

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Robert Pattinson as Mickey in Mickey 17

Pattinson has proven to be the perfect choice for the film as he stole the show in all the trailers. The Batman actor has stayed away from the screen for quite some time and his return as the titular expendable has generated excitement among fans.

Bong Joon-ho also praised the actor's performance in the film, as he revealed that he improvised a lot of lines,

“While filming, Rob [Pattinson] improvised many unexpected lines as Mickey 18. I was very grateful for that,"

He then added how he portrayed Mickey brilliantly, adding,

“Mickey 18 has an aggressive personality, but gradually, he grows to want to protect Mickey 17. Rob did an excellent job of portraying this internal change in the character.”

Mickey 17 is set to release on 18 April 2025.