Overview
Not once, not twice, but at least 17 times, Robert Pattinson (The Batman) dies in Mickey 17. In the just-dropped full trailer for the new science-fiction film, his character is not too happy about it, either. But when you've signed up to be an 'expendable', as Mickey has in this adaptation of Edward Ashton's book Mickey 7, you've agreed to kick the bucket over and over and over for a living.
On the page, the lead character is the seventh version — thank human printing — working as part of an effort to to colonise an ice world and soon finding himself trying to fend off the eighth. Mickey 17 has clearly upped that to the 17th version of its lead character. And, with Korean director Bong Joon-ho writing and directing, making his long-awaited first feature since Parasite, it's leaning heavily on comedy as well.
Mickey 17 has been in the works for years, even dropping an initial teaser trailer at the end of 2022. Back then, the flick was targeting a March 2024 release date; however, that changed early this year, with the movie now hitting cinemas in January 2025.
Thanks to everything that the last few years have served up, 2019, when the Palme d'Or-, Sydney Film Festival Prize- and Oscar-winning Parasite released, seems like a lifetime ago. So, waiting for anything since that innocent pre-pandemic time feels like waiting forever. But a new Bong movie has always been worth it so far, as his impressive cinematic resume attests. He's also the filmmaker behind stunning crime procedural Memories of Murder, creature feature The Host, dystopian thriller Snowpiercer and the offbeat Okja, after all.
Mickey 17 looks set to mark the filmmaker's third movie mostly in English after Snowpiercer and Okja, with Pattinson leading a cast that also includes Steven Yeun (Beef), Naomi Ackie (Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody), Toni Collette (Mafia Mamma) and Mark Ruffalo (Poor Things).
Science-fiction fans will spot that the premise alone gives off big Moon, Sunshine and Voyagers vibes — and brings High Life, RPatz's last exceptional sci-fi flick, to mind. That said, Bong isn't a filmmaker to follow in anyone else's footsteps. How he makes this concept his own already looks like a treat to see based on the two sneak peeks so far.
Mickey 17 is a return for Pattinson, too, given that he hasn't been seen on-screen since his debut turn as Bruce Wayne — although he could be heard in the English-language version of Hayao Miyazaki's The Boy and the Heron, adding a movie by another iconic director to his filmography.
Check out the full trailer for Mickey 17 below:
Mickey 17 releases in cinemas Down Under on Thursday, January 30, 2025.