Although the Mickey 17 cast were at first baffled by the unique way Parasite director Bong Joon Ho works, now they want it no other way

Six years after the release of his Oscar-winning masterpiece Parasite, director Bong Joon Ho is back on our screens with his latest feature Mickey 17, which tells the story of an 'expendable' (played by Robert Pattinson) whose body is reprinted every time he dies whilst taking on dangerous missions for the space colony he calls home.

For this new sci-fi movie, director Bong has assembled quite the impressive ensemble cast who join lead actor Pattinson. Mickey 17 also stars Naomi Ackie as top agent Nasha, Steven Yeun as Mickey's childhood friend Timo, and Toni Collette as the mission commander's devious wife Ylfa.

Speaking to 12DOVE in an interview ahead of the movie's release, the trio said it was an immediate yes to working with director Bong. However, they were admittedly unprepared for what exactly that meant, revealing that the filmmaker has unique methods.

As Collette reveals, they "shoot the storyboard" meaning "moments rather than the whole scene", with Ackie adding that it changed how they approached shooting: "The way that he structures our work and his work, with shooting frame by frame, was incredible."

Yeun notes that this isn't common either, when Collette asks her co-star if it's how they shoot movies in South Korea. Instead he clarifies that it is a "specific thing" for director Bong.

At first this did baffle the trio, even though director Bong did his best to reassure them that it won't take long to adjust. Ackie recalls: "I remember us being around the table and he told us how it works, and I didn't know that going in. I remember we were just like 'huh' but he said in like five days you'll be totally fine. He was so laid back about it."

Not only was director Bong right about that, with Ackie saying it one day clicked into place, but now the trio would love to work like that more in the future. As Ackie puts it: "I remember us nearly finishing and just being like, 'how am I going to go back to before?'"

Clearly it all paid off, not just for the cast but seemingly for audiences too, with the film already receiving rave reactions. In fact, our very own Mickey 17 review awarded it the full five stars, describing it as "funny, charming, and exhilarating" and Pattinson's best movie to date.

Mickey 17 releases in US and UK theaters on March 7. For more films to watch out for, check out our guide to the best upcoming movies of 2025.