When will Bugonia premiere? Release date, cast details, first look, and more

An absurdist black comedy thriller that was directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, Bugonia explores the extremely and increasingly paranoid universe of conspiracy theories and more. The film premiered worldwide at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival on August 28, 2025, and will premiere theatrically in the USA on October 24, 2025. That will be followed by a nationwide release a week later, on October 31, 2025.

The 2025 film is an English-language remake of the 2003 South Korean film Save the Green Planet! and is the fourth time that actress Emma Stone and Lanthimos have collaborated together. The story revolves around Teddy, a disgruntled beekeeper who, alongside his cousin Don, kidnaps Michelle Fuller, the CEO of a pharmaceutical bioengineering company.

The two men are convinced that Fuller is an alien and proceed to shave, strip, and then chain her to their basement while interrogating her. The cast includes Emma Stone as Fuller, Jesse Plemons as Teddy, and Aidan Delbis as Don, alongside Stavros Halkias and Alicia Silverstone.

Development on the film began as early as 2020, with Ari Aster producing and with Jang Joon-hwan initially roped in to direct the film. However, Lanthimos later replaced Jang, who also joined on as a producer alongside Stone and several others.

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When and where will Bugonia be released?

"Bugonia" Headline Gala - The 69th BFI London Film Festival - (Image via Getty)

Following its successful festival run, Yorgos Lanthimos' black comedy film Bugonia will receive a staggered theatrical release. It will kick off on October 24, 2025, with a limited release in select theaters and then be followed by a nationwide release from October 31, 2025.

The 2025 film stars Emma Stone and Jesse Plemons in lead roles and premiered at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival on August 28, 2025. From there, it was screened at the Telluride Film Festival on August 30, the San Sebastián International Film Festival on September 24, 2025, and Beyond Fest on October 8, 2025.

The film earned critical acclaim at all four film festivals and is now set to be released in select theaters across the USA. That includes the Atom Tickets, Harkins Theatres, and B&B Theatres chains, with AMC Theatres also included in the mix.

Bugonia will also be released in South Korea, with Focus Features handling the film’s distribution in the United States, while CJ ENM will distribute it in South Korea.

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All cast members in Bugonia

Bugonia features a stellar ensemble cast led by three main performers who drive the film's intense psychological narrative. Here's the complete cast lineup:

• Emma Stone as Michelle Fuller
• Jesse Plemons as Teddy
• Aidan Delbis as Don
• Stavros Halkias as Casey
• Alicia Silverstone as Sandy
• Raquel Ferri Moscardo
• Sam Nivola
• Jerrod Carmichael
• Margaret Qualley (cameo)

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What to expect from Bugonia?

Bugonia is a dark comedy thriller that is directed by Yorgos Lanthimos and is an English-language remake of the 2003 South Korean film Save the Green Planet! The film revolves around a paranoid beekeeper, Teddy (Jesse Plemons), and his impressionable cousin Don, who kidnap Michelle Fuller (Emma Stone).

She is a high-powered CEO of a bioengineering pharmaceutical company, and the two men believe that she is an alien from the Andromeda species. They also believe that she is hell-bent on destroying humanity and has come to Earth to do exactly that. After kidnapping her, the two shave her head, as they believe her long hair is how she communicates with her kind, then strip her and chain her to a bed in their basement.

They also interrogate her as Michelle does everything in her power to battle the two men using her wits. To make matters worse, Teddy is actually a low-level employee at her company, and he proceeds to subject her to increasingly unhinged theories. The plot of the film revolves around a countdown to a lunar eclipse, which is when Teddy believes he can negotiate with the alien species and get them to leave Earth.

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Bugonia will release in select theaters in the United States on October 24, 2025.

Edited by Somava