The Screenwriter Details the Numerous Unexpected Turns of Emma Stone's Latest Sci-Fi Film

The film writer Will Tracy has a hazy memory of what transpires in Save the Green Planet!. That’s a bit of a surprise, given that he crafted the screenplay for Yorgos Lanthimos’s latest reimagining of the 2003 Korean dark sci-fi comedy. Rather than studying the source material for inspiration, the screenwriter behind The Menu watched the film once, took a few notes, and began writing.

“I’ve only seen Save the Green Planet the one time,” Tracy states. “I didn’t really remember the film all that well. I didn't want to feel like I had to be slavishly following or recreating or honoring someone else's vision. The most respectful approach to those movies was to have them each stand on their own.”

While the premise of a emotionally troubled man (Jesse Plemons in the new version) who kidnaps a business leader he’s certain is an alien in disguise is largely the same in each movie, the differences are notable. To start, Tracy rewrote the lead role, played by a man in Jang Joon-hwan’s first version, as a female character. (Lanthimos cast his regular partner Emma Stone in the part.) The conclusions vary a bit too, in the way they address their shared core mystery: Is the character an alien in disguise or not really?

The screenwriter feels that resolution is somewhat not the main focus.

“I wasn't really concerned with the twist aspect,” he comments. “I didn't want the film to just be a gadget that performs one surprise, and then after the reveal, it's like: Alright, so what's next?”

However, Tracy has plenty to say on the topic. The interview with the writer touched on Bugonia’s ending and what it all means, along with the ways he and Lanthimos worked together to bring those twists to life.

Warning: Complete details ahead for the ending of Bugonia.

So is Emma Stone an alien or not an alien?

Short answer: Absolutely.

Similar to in the original film, the end of Bugonia reveals that the CEO, a pharmaceutical executive named her character, is in fact alien royalty in disguise. After tricking her captor Teddy (the actor) into ending his own life using her teleportation technology, Fuller beams back up to her alien vessel.

The reality that this is unexpected is a testament to Stone’s acting skills. Throughout the 118-minute movie, she keeps audiences guessing through a complex portrayal that may require multiple viewings to fully understand.

“She talked a lot about how it was the initial instance she had to give a performance where she felt she had to be aware of people watching the movie a second time. What the repeat viewers are going to perceive,” the writer says. "She knew the second time someone sees this film, They are aware I am conscious of… understand?”

He trails off, before adding, “So she had to be aware of that in her acting.”

Designing the Andromedons and their spaceship

Once the CEO ultimately shows her true nature, we get a brief glimpse of her spaceship and other extraterrestrials before Bugonia concludes. Their vessel has a distinct appearance, which the writer reveals was intended to look like a marine animal while avoiding futuristic aesthetics.

“[Yorgos] was really interested in almost like a jellyfish-type design for the vessel, something very natural,” he comments.

They should feel oddly somewhat primitive or primitive.

The Andromedons’ clothing is just as interesting as their ship: bulbous robes made from thick, woven cords. Again, the aim was to defy sci-fi movie tradition.

“For the costumes, rather than being futuristic, they [were meant to|aimed to] feel unusually somewhat tribal or primitive, and yet also highly decorative and not primitive, because it's such an intricate and elegant creation on those strange knit costumes,” Tracy says. He adds that Lanthimos “thought of it as being a extremely old society. He wasn't into the idea of any element being smooth and metallic, or a hyper-futuristic look.”

The end of the world (or only humankind)

Perhaps the most significant change between Bugonia and Save the Green Planet is that in the first version, the aliens react to their ruler's abduction and mistreatment by destroying planet Earth. This adaptation takes a slightly subtler method, with its aliens opting to eliminate all mankind, while keeping the Earth and its remaining creatures unharmed.

“My intention to do in the script was a depiction of the planet after humanity,” Tracy says.

In the film's conclusion, we see a series of shots of life across the planet. All humans lie dead where they were standing moments earlier, but the world continues. What we, as an audience, are meant to interpret all this is open to discussion. Is the ending of the film optimistic or bleak? Are people doomed or deserving of rescue? Is the planet be improved in our absence?

The screenwriter does not wish to provide a clear resolution in any direction.

“Certain viewers see it as a very bleak ending, or a tragic ending, a hopeless ending,” he says. “Different audiences see it as being a strangely optimistic or positive ending. I think there are various interpretations to understand it.”

Bugonia is in select cinemas at present, with a broader opening on Oct. 31.