The Screenwriter Explains the Many Surprising Twists of the New Science Fiction Movie

Bugonia writer Will Tracy barely recalls what transpires in the original Korean movie. This is somewhat unexpected, given that he wrote the script for Yorgos Lanthimos’s new adaptation of the original 2003 film. Instead of studying the original script for inspiration, the writer behind his previous work viewed the film a single time, jotted down some thoughts, and began writing.

“I’ve only seen the original once,” Tracy explains. “I couldn't clearly recall the film in great detail. My aim wasn't to feel as though I had to be slavishly following or remaking or paying tribute to another filmmaker's work. The fairest thing to those movies was to have them be judged separately.”

While the basic plot of a emotionally troubled man (Jesse Plemons in Bugonia) who kidnaps a business leader he’s certain is an alien in disguise is mostly the identical in both films, the variations are notable. For one thing, Tracy rewrote the lead role, played by a man in Jang Joon-hwan’s first version, as a woman. (Lanthimos cast his frequent collaborator the actress in the role.) The endings differ slightly too, in the way they tackle their shared core mystery: Is this person an alien in disguise or not?

Tracy believes that answer is a bit irrelevant.

“I never was really concerned with the twist aspect,” he says. “I didn't want the film to just be a toy that does one surprise, and then once it does that surprise, it's like: Alright, so what's next?”

However, he has plenty to say on the subject. The interview with the writer covered the film’s finale and its implications, along with the methods he and the director worked together to bring those twists to life.

Spoiler Alert: Complete details follow for the conclusion of Bugonia.

Therefore, is Emma Stone an extraterrestrial or not an alien?

Short answer: Absolutely.

Just like in the original film, the end of this version reveals that Stone’s character, a pharmaceutical executive named her character, is actually alien royalty in hiding. Once she manipulates her kidnapper the unstable man (the actor) into killing himself using her advanced device, Fuller beams back up to her Andromedon spaceship.

The fact that this comes as a surprise is a testament to Stone’s acting skills. Throughout the 118-minute movie, she keeps audiences guessing through a complex portrayal that may take several rewatches to comprehend entirely.

“Emma talked a lot about how it was the first time she had to give a performance where she felt she had to be conscious 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 someone sees this film, They know that I know that I'm… you know?”

Tracy trails off, before continuing, “So she had to be aware this awareness in her performance.”

Creating the Andromedons and their spaceship

After the CEO ultimately shows her true nature, we get a brief glimpse of her ship and fellow aliens before Bugonia ends. Their vessel has a distinct appearance, which the writer shares was meant to look like a marine animal while steering clear of high-tech visuals.

“[Yorgos] was really fascinated by almost like a jellyfish-type design for the vessel, something quite organic,” Tracy says.

They should feel strangely somewhat tribal or ancient.

The Andromedons’ clothing is equally fascinating as their ship: bulbous robes made from thick, woven cords. Again, the aim was to defy conventional science fiction.

“Regarding the attire, rather than being advanced, they [were meant to|aimed to] appear strangely kind of primitive or basic, and yet also highly decorative and not primitive, because it's a very detailed and beautiful design on those unusual woven outfits,” the writer says. He adds that Lanthimos “thought of it as being a extremely old society. He disliked the idea of anything being sleek and silver, or some ultra-modern cosmic vision.”

The conclusion of the Earth (or only humanity)

Perhaps the most significant change between Bugonia and the original is that in the original Korean movie, the extraterrestrials react to their ruler's abduction and mistreatment by blowing up the world. This adaptation takes a somewhat more nuanced method, with its beings choosing to snuff out all human life, while keeping the Earth and its remaining creatures intact.

“What I wanted to achieve in the screenplay was a vision of Earth post-human existence,” Tracy says.

In the movie’s final moments, we see a series of shots of life across the globe. Every person are deceased where they were standing moments earlier, but the Earth continues. What we, as an audience, are meant to make of all this is up for debate. Does the conclusion of the film hopeful or pessimistic? Is humanity doomed or worth saving? Would the world be improved in our absence?

The screenwriter isn’t willing to provide a definitive answer in any direction.

“Certain viewers see it as a very bleak conclusion, or a tragic ending, a hopeless outcome,” he states. “Other people view it as being a strangely optimistic or happy conclusion. In my opinion there are various interpretations to read it.”

The film is in select cinemas now, with a broader opening on Oct. 31.