The Screenwriter Details the Countless Surprising Twists of the Latest Sci-Fi Film

Bugonia screenwriter Will Tracy has a hazy memory of what transpires in the original Korean movie. That’s a bit of a surprise, given that he crafted the screenplay for Yorgos Lanthimos’s new adaptation of the original 2003 film. Instead of poring over the original script for ideas, the writer behind The Menu watched the movie a single time, took a few notes, and began writing.

“I’ve only seen Save the Green Planet the one time,” Tracy states. “I didn’t really remember the film in great detail. My aim wasn't to feel as though I had to be slavishly following or recreating or paying tribute to someone else's vision. The most respectful approach to those movies was to have them be judged separately.”

While the basic plot of a mentally unstable man (the actor in the new version) who kidnaps a pharmaceutical executive he’s convinced is an alien in disguise is mostly the identical in both films, the variations are considerable. For one thing, Tracy re-envisioned the lead role, originally male in Jang Joon-hwan’s first version, as a female character. (Lanthimos cast his regular partner the actress in the role.) The conclusions differ slightly too, in the way they address their shared core mystery: Is the character an extraterrestrial or not really?

The screenwriter feels that answer is a bit not the main focus.

“I wasn't really focused on the twist aspect,” he comments. “I didn't want the movie to just be a gadget that performs a single trick, and then after the reveal, it's like: OK, well, what else does this toy do?”

However, he has plenty to discuss on the topic. The interview with the screenwriter covered Bugonia’s finale and what it all means, along with the ways he and Lanthimos collaborated to execute those surprises.

Warning: Complete details follow for the ending of Bugonia.

Therefore, is the character an extraterrestrial or not an alien?

In brief: Absolutely.

Just like in Save the Green Planet, the conclusion of this version discloses that the CEO, a pharmaceutical executive named Michelle Fuller, is actually a royal extraterrestrial in disguise. After tricking her kidnapper Teddy (Plemons) into killing himself using her teleportation technology, she transports to her alien vessel.

The fact that this is unexpected is a proof to Stone’s acting skills. During the 118-minute film, she maintains suspense through a complex performance that may take multiple viewings to fully understand.

“Emma frequently discussed how it was the initial instance she had to give a performance where she felt she had to be aware of people watching the movie a second time. How those rewatching are going to perceive,” the writer says. "She was aware the upon a repeat viewing a person watches this film, They are aware I am conscious of… you know?”

He trails off, before continuing, “Thus, her performance needed to reflect of that in her acting.”

Designing the aliens and their spaceship

After the CEO finally does reveal her real identity, we get a quick look of her ship and other extraterrestrials before Bugonia ends. Their vessel has a unique design, which the writer reveals was meant to look like a marine animal while avoiding high-tech visuals.

“[The director] was really interested in almost like a jellyfish-type design for the spaceship, something very natural,” he comments.

They should feel oddly kind of primitive or primitive.

The Andromedons’ clothing is equally fascinating as their vessel: rounded dress-like garments made from thick, woven cords. Once more, the goal was to go against sci-fi movie tradition.

“Regarding the attire, rather than being futuristic, they [were meant to|aimed to] appear strangely kind of primitive or basic, and yet also quite ornate and not primitive, because it's such an intricate and beautiful design on those strange knit costumes,” Tracy states. He adds that Lanthimos “viewed it as being a very ancient civilization. He disliked the idea of any element being smooth and metallic, or a hyper-futuristic look.”

The end of the world (or just humanity)

Perhaps the biggest difference between Bugonia and the original is that in the first version, the extraterrestrials respond to their ruler's abduction and abuse by destroying the world. This adaptation takes a slightly subtler approach, with its beings choosing to snuff out all mankind, while leaving the planet and its remaining creatures unharmed.

“My intention to achieve in the script was a depiction of Earth post-human existence,” the writer says.

In the movie’s final moments, we see a sequence of scenes of existence across the planet. All humans are deceased where they were standing moments earlier, but the Earth keeps spinning. How viewers, are meant to interpret all this is up for debate. Does the conclusion of Bugonia hopeful or bleak? Are people doomed or deserving of rescue? Is the planet be better off without us?

The screenwriter does not wish to provide a clear resolution in any direction.

“Certain viewers see it as a extremely dark conclusion, or a sad finale, a hopeless outcome,” he states. “Different audiences see it as being a strangely hopeful or positive conclusion. I think there are various interpretations to read it.”

The film is in limited theatrical release now, with a wide release on Halloween.