"Mickey 17" New Trailer: Robert Pattinson Faces a Cloning Dilemma in Oscar-winner Bong Joon-ho’s Latest Sci-Fi Spectacle with Mark Ruffalo and Naomi Ackie

Robert Pattinson Stars in Bong Joon-ho's Latest Sci-Fi Epic About Cloning, Class, and Survival

The last time Bong Joon-ho sat in the director's chair, he created the Oscar-winning Korean film Parasite, which explored the lengths to which people are willing to go to build a stable life, even if it means stepping on others or exploiting them for personal gain. In his latest opus, a big science-fiction film starring Robert Pattinson, Bong Joon-ho continues to tackle themes of class disparity and worker exploitation, but this time, the backdrop is much grander, laden with special effects and giant alien bugs. If you're familiar with Bong Joon-ho’s work beyond Parasite, it’s no surprise that he’s bringing his signature dark comedic, class-conscious style to this space action spectacle. After all, he’s the director who gave us the epic Korean Kaiju thriller The Host and the post-apocalyptic uprising thriller Snowpiercer.

Set in a dystopian future, Mickey 17 features Batman star Robert Pattinson as Mickey Barnes, a low-level maintenance worker aboard a spaceship fleeing Earth. Mickey has agreed to become an "expendable" – a disposable employee tasked with the most dangerous jobs, knowing he’ll be regenerated each time he dies on the job. However, it seems Mickey, a bit of a dimwit, didn’t read the fine print of his contract. So, it comes as a surprise when he first dies on the job after inhaling deadly viruses on an uncharted planet.

Now on his 17th clone, Mickey narrates his story, expressing his frustration with the constant question from his coworkers: "What does it feel like to die?" Despite his disdain for his job and his irritation with the "dickheads" he works with, Mickey is fortunate enough to meet the one person he can't live without: Nasha, played by Blink Twice star Naomi Ackie.

Just as things are becoming routine and somewhat bearable, Mickey gets the shock of his life: he discovers the existence of another Mickey clone aboard the ship—a serious violation punishable by one clone’s elimination. But the real question arises: who gets to live? Mickey 17, the other clone, or perhaps neither?

This, of course, raises the bigger question: who gets to decide who gets to live and who’s worth saving? Those damn dickheads in control, or Mickey—the guy who risks his life, multiple times a day, to keep things running on the ship? Our vote, of course, is with that stupid dimwit Mickey.

Among those playing the ship's main dickheads are Mark Ruffalo, fresh off his Oscar nomination for Poor Things and the always-reliable Toni Collette. The other cast members include Steven Yeun, Cameron Britton, Holliday Grainger, Anamaria Vartolomei, Patsy Ferran, Thomas Turgoose, Tim Key, and Steve Park.

Bong Joon-ho wrote and directed the film, which is based on the sci-fi novel Mickey7 by Edward Ashton.

Mickey 17 is coming to theaters March 7th.