The official trailer for BUGONIA, the highly anticipated science fiction comedy directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, has been released ahead of its cinema debut this October. Starring Emma Stone and Jesse Plemons, the film marks a return to Lanthimos’ signature style, dark, absurd, and unsettlingly humorous, with a surreal storyline that fuses conspiracy paranoia with ecological themes.
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An English-language remake of the cult 2003 South Korean film Save the Green Planet! by Jang Joon-hwan, BUGONIA centers on two young men convinced that a powerful CEO is, in fact, an alien sent to destroy Earth. In this version, the character has been reimagined as Michelle, portrayed by Emma Stone, who plays the head of a pharmaceutical giant. Jesse Plemons stars as Teddy, a beekeeping conspiracist whose obsession with planetary survival drives the plot’s increasingly bizarre events.
This marks Stone’s fifth collaboration with Lanthimos following acclaimed projects like The Favourite and Poor Things. The cast also includes Aidan Delbis, Stavros Halkias, and Alicia Silverstone. The trailer teases a chaotic blend of psychological tension, stylized violence, and satirical commentary, set against a world that feels just close enough to ours to be disturbing.
Shot on 35mm with VistaVision cameras by cinematographer Robbie Ryan, BUGONIA was filmed primarily in High Wycombe, England, with final scenes shot on Sarakiniko Beach on the Greek island of Milos after a rejected proposal to shoot at the Acropolis in Athens. The film’s visual tone, as seen in the trailer, straddles brutalist interiors and sweeping alien-like landscapes, underscoring the tension between reality and delusion.
Produced by an impressive team that includes Lanthimos, Emma Stone, Ari Aster, and Ed Guiney, the project has been in the works since 2020. Will Tracy’s adapted screenplay flips the gender of the original film’s CEO character, introducing a fresh dynamic and critical lens on power and paranoia in the corporate age.
BUGONIA will premiere in UK and Ireland cinemas in October 2025, coinciding with its limited release in the United States on October 24 before a wide release on October 31. Distributed by Focus Features internationally and CJ ENM in South Korea, the film is positioned as one of the most anticipated genre releases of the year, playfully unhinged, socially charged, and unmistakably Lanthimos.
