Director Yorgos Lanthimos is known for his confronting films that often contain genre elements and aim to tap into a deeper truth about the more disturbing parts of humanity. While he was on a stint of period pieces with The Favourite and Poor Things, more recently, he’s going back to basics with simpler, more nihilistic pieces. And that couldn’t be truer in his newest film, Bugonia (which screened at Fantastic Fest 2025 as a secret screening), written by Will Tracy as an adaptation of the Korean film Save the Green Planet!. The result is a weird, deeply uncomfortable movie for freaks like me, starring a stellar trio of performances from Lanthimos regulars Jesse Plemons and Emma Stone, and newcomer Aidan Delbis.
Teddy (Plemons) is an apiarist with an aversion to showering and an affinity for conspiracy theories regarding Michelle, a high-powered CEO of a pharmaceutical company (Stone). Specifically, he’s obsessed with the idea that she’s actually an alien set on destroying Earth. He’s recruited his cousin Don (Delbis) on his mission, not because Don necessarily believes in all of it, but because he wants to be around Teddy. So he goes along with the plan, to the point of chemical castration, so they aren’t distracted or tempted once they fulfill their mission.
The mission? Kidnap the CEO and get her to confess she’s from an alien planet.
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And they are successful in that first step. They grab her, despite her personal training and strict health regimen, and chain her to the floor in their basement. There, they shave her head (hair is how she communicates with her home planet) and cover her in antihistamine ointment to dull her powers. While she tries to use corporate speak to get them to let her go (“Let’s have a dialogue about this”), Teddy has prepared for anything. From there, the torture begins, and things only get more slippery for this doomed group.
While Lanthimos didn’t pen the script, the story perfectly fits his sensibilities. He and Tracy are a match made in hell as both have a dark, dry, yet deeply hysterical sense of humor perfect for probing the weirder parts of humanity. Within this dank basement with just three characters, Lanthimos crafts a film with a deep sense of unease akin to The Killing of a Sacred Deer. Plus, every character disgusts you, but you’re still fascinated by their actions.
That’s only elevated here by expectedly incredible performances by Plemons and Stone. Plemons is the perfect sleazy guy who reeks of desperation and delusion. He is able to play both unassuming and intimidating in a way that feels too familiar. On the flip side, Stone is a pitch-perfect GirlBoss with her careful diction and inability to understand the concept of empathy. She embodies everything we hate about billionaires, all wrapped in a perfectly manicured box.
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And Delbis holds his own against these two seasoned performers. Delbis’ Don could easily become a joke character, one easily manipulated and never given any sort of agency. But the script is smarter than that, and Delbis’ performance also brings a devastating empathy to Don outside of his disability. He’s constantly questioning Teddy and pushing back against their plan while also trying to hold onto his last surviving family member. There’s more nuanced tragedy here, which makes Bugonia all the more devastating.
Oh, and I’d be remiss to not mention comedian Stavros Halkias’ role as the nervous and slimy cop, Casey, who used to babysit Teddy when they were kids. He plays a small but crucial part in the impending doom of Bugonia, especially in revealing bits of Teddy’s disturbing and upsetting past.
There is something odd about this movie that doesn’t sit right once the credits start to roll, particularly regarding the world of conspiracy theorists. Sure, this is just a movie, and who doesn’t want to see pharmaceutical CEOs kidnapped and tortured as retribution for the wrongs they’ve wrought upon the masses? But in an era where conspiracy theories are leading to actual violence and death, it feels perhaps too on the nose.
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For some, it may just be plain tasteless. But to this writer, between Lanthimos’ direction, Tracy’s tight script, and trio of devastating performances, Bugonia skirts that line expertly to create something deeply uncomfortable but always compelling.
Bugonia is paranoid cinema that’s, unfortunately, perfect for the modern era. Between vigilantes taking a pharmaceutical executive hostage to said vigilantes being dark web conspiracy theorists, it’s incredibly prescient, almost tragically so. It’s a film designed to make you uncomfortable, which is why Lanthimos is such a perfect match for this script. While its approach to contemporary culture is sticky, it’s a must-watch for the freaks out there who hunger for bleak cinema that laughs in the face of a happy ending.
Focus Features will release Bugonia with a special limited engagement on October 24, 2025, ahead of a wide expansion on October 31, 2025.
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