Robert Pattinson’s last space sci-fi film saw the actor playing a prisoner made to serve his sentence on a shuttle hurtling toward a black hole (among other human-rights offenses, including really messed-up sexual harassment). His next space drama? Mickey 17, a Bong Joon Ho joint based on the novel Mickey7, by Edward Ashton, which tells the story of an employee on an expedition to colonize an ice world — but he’s only doing it for the check. He is cloned so he can continue the dangerous mission, and the number is a reference to how many times he dies. Bong — who wrote, directed, and produced the film — explained the title change via an interpreter at CinemaCon. “I killed him ten more times!” the Oscar-winning Parasite director said, per Variety. The release date may have been pushed, but now we’ve got glimpse at Pattinson’s death cycle in the new trailer, introducing a few other cast members.
What happens in the trailer?
Mickey wanted to get off Earth. He wasn’t gonna read the paperwork to understand that he was agreeing to become “Expendable,” his body reprinted after every fatal mission, goofy Ren & Stimpy accent included. This appears to be possible partly because of what looks like a cryogenic freezer in an apparently tricked-out MRI machine in a long, sparse room — the same one we saw in the first look last year. But somehow, an extra copy ends up staying alive, and he’s not going down to a smarmy Mark Ruffalo. “Mickey Barnes, fighting right to the end,” Naomi Ackie flirts as they stage a revolution. If Bong’s previous films are anything to go by, Mickey 17 will be another social thriller. But wait, which one of these Robert Pattinsons is my man?
Why Pattinson?
Bong said that Pattinson was perfect for the part because “he’s got this crazy thing in his eyes,” adding that he believed the actor had the creativity to play all the different variations of the character. Meanwhile, Pattinson — who called Bong his “hero” — said he was told the part was “impossible” when he first got the script, which excited him.
Who else is in the cast?
Mickey 17 also stars Steven Yeun (Minari), Naomi Ackie (I Wanna Dance With Somebody), Toni Collette (Hereditary), and Mark Ruffalo (the Hulk).
When’s it coming out (and why did it take so long?)
After several date changes, Pattinson is now set to defrost on March 7, 2025. Mickey 17 was originally set to hit theaters on March 29, 2024, but was delayed because it needed more time to finish after the Hollywood strikes and other production shifts, according to Variety, The movie was later set to bow on January 31, 2025, and then got pushed back to April 18, 2025 before finally moving up to its current release date in March.
This post has been updated.