Development on the film began as early as 2020, with Jang attached to direct and Tracy adapting the screenplay. Ari Aster came on board as producer soon after, and by February 2024, Lanthimos was hired to direct, replacing Jang, while Stone joined the project both as an actress and producer. Plemons joined the cast that May, and it was soon acquired by Focus Features for distribution at the Cannes Film Festival. Principal photography began in July in High Wycombe, England, and during which time, the rest of the cast was announced. Additional filming took place in May 2025 in Milos, Greece.
Bugonia had its world premiere in the main competition of the 82nd Venice International Film Festival on August 28, 2025, and is scheduled to be theatrically released in the United States by Focus Features on October 24, 2025.
Synopsis
Two conspiracy-obsessed young men kidnap the high-powered CEO of a major company, convinced that she is an alien intent on destroying planet Earth.[2][3]
Cast
Emma Stone as Michelle Fuller, the CEO of a major pharmaceutical company
Development of an English-language remake of the South Korean film Save the Green Planet! by Jang Joon-hwan began in 2020 with Will Tracy adapting the screenplay, and Jang attached to direct the remake.[4]Ari Aster was signed on to produce and was instrumental in the hiring of Tracy and the decision to gender swap the central character from a man to a woman.[5]
In February 2024, it was revealed that Yorgos Lanthimos would be directing the remake in place of Jang, with Element Pictures joining the production team.[6]Emma Stone was also in talks to star in the film, making it her fourth collaboration with Lanthimos.[7]Jesse Plemons officially joined the cast by the time it was retitled Bugonia and taken to the Cannes Film Market in May.[8][9] In October, Alicia Silverstone joined the cast.[10] In May 2025, it was revealed that Aidan Delbis and Stavros Halkias were members of the cast as well.[11]
Jerskin Fendrix composed the film's score, performed by the London Contemporary Orchestra. This marks his third collaboration with Lanthimos after Poor Things (2023) and Kinds of Kindness (2024). According to sound designer Johnnie Burn, Fendrix was asked by Lanthimos to write the score based on four key words. He did not provide him with the script or any other footage until after hearing the score.
"Βουγονία/Bugonia" is a Greek word, spelled "bougonia", which refers to an ancient Mediterranean ritual or belief that bees spontaneously generate from the carcasses of dead animals, particularly oxen.[16]
Focus Features acquired the film's worldwide rights outside South Korea, which CJ ENM Films & Television retained, to the project at the Marché du Film in May 2024, with its parent Universal Pictures handling international distribution on its behalf.[8] The film is scheduled to have a limited release in the United States on October 24, 2025, before a wide release on October 31.[44] It will be released in Ireland by Universal Pictures on October 31,[45] and in South Korea by CJ ENM in November 2025.[46] It was previously scheduled to be released on November 7, 2025.[47]
Reception
Critical response
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 93% of 42 critics' reviews are positive.The website's consensus reads: "Emma Stone and Jesse Plemons are at the top of their game in Bugonia, a bonkers entertainment that applies director Yorgos Lanthimos' whip-smart method to modern society's madness."[48]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 75 out of 100, based on 16 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[49]
↑ "2025 Programming". Strasbourg European Fantastic Film Festival. September 2, 2025. Archived from the original on September 16, 2025. Retrieved September 8, 2025.
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