Bong Joon-ho, director of hit thriller film Parasite, shares an update on the upcoming serialised spin-off.
South Korean writer-director Bong Joon-ho has shared some news on the HBO spin-off of his movie, Parasite. The famous director has worked with fellow playwright, Adam McKay, to bring the series to life on HBO. After being invited to run a masterclass at the Cannes film festival, he said that “[the television series] will be something of great genius, I hope. I worked with Adam McKay and he’s figuring out the scenario. We’re going to do it in the United States”.
The director also expressed that he wants to expand upon ideas that couldn’t be included in the film. Bong shared how “[my ideas are all] stored in my iPad and my goal with this limited series is to create a six-hour-long film”. There was also a want to expand upon elements within the film that were not sufficiently explained away.
“For example, when the original housekeeper Mun Gwang (Lee Jung Eun) comes back in the late night, something happened to her face. Even her husband asked about it, but she never answered. I know why she had the bruises on her face. I have a story for that.”
Credit: Cannes Film Festival
Adaptation Controversy
Adam McKay has reassured fans of the original movie that the series was not a full adaptation of Parasite, telling the Happy Sad Confused podcast that “It’s in the same universe as the feature, [but is] an original story that lives in that same world”.
This follows controversy surrounding the original announcement of the show. Fans of the movie had expressed their distaste for an American adaptation, which appeared to take away from the successes of a foreign language film. Esquire wrote about these concerns, stating that while the film is so uniquely Korean, it allows for an uncommon view of the other side of the world, and for the development of empathy for their people.
“The setting and language might not be the same, but the experiences and the humanity are. Transplanting them to somewhere more recognisable just dilutes the idea that, deep down, we’re all pretty much the same.”
Credit: Esquire
No official release date has been announced for the series, but casting and shooting will begin soon.
