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FEATURE MOVIE

GENRE: Sci-fi comedy RUN TIME: 2h 17m

THE CLONE RANGER: MICKEY 17 The only thing better than Robert Pattinson is… 17 or even 18 duplicates of our favourite Batman and Twilight star. Can we ever get enough?

D irector Bong Joon Ho was banking on an audience’s insatiable appetite for Pattinson to propel his sci-fi black comedy, Mickey 17 . Set in the year 2054, and based on Edward Ashton’s novel Mickey7 , the plot follows Pattinson’s unlikely hero Mickey Barnes who joins a space colony as an “expendable" - a disposable worker who gets cloned every time he dies. It’s the ultimate commitment to the job... to die for a living. Ho was captivated by Ashton’s 2022 novel: “I thought that it had such a unique concept, which is human printing, and that’s very different from human cloning. It’s like you’re

surprised to be approached by Ho. “It just came out of nowhere. I met him and really loved him. Then the script came in, and it is one of the craziest things I’d ever read. It felt risky, but in a really nice way. “It’s one of those scripts where I haven’t read anything like it in a long time, and I don’t think I’ll ever read anything like it again.

FUN FACT

“Then to know that it’s someone with his level of pedigree coming to this script which, in some ways, is also like a sci-fi farce. Actually, I have no idea how to describe it to people at all. You go off the rails almost immediately trying to describe it,” he laughs. “I think nowadays there are very few directors in the world who are on Bong’s level. He’s living in very rarified air. I’ve just been such a huge fan of his,” adds Pattinson, 39. Gill Pringle

printing out humans as if human beings are just pieces of paper, documents to be printed out. And I thought that in human printing - even in the expression itself - we could sense the tragedy of that condition and that profession,” says the Oscar-winning Parasite director. Pattinson was both thrilled and

Bong Joon Ho changed his adaptation from Mickey7 to Mickey 17 so that he could kill Robert Pattinson's character ten more times.

• Mickey 17 is out Jun 4

REVISIT THE FILMS BONG JOON HO:

Parasite, Snowpiercer, Memories of Murder

GENRE: Action thriller RUN TIME: 1hr 41m

JOHN WICK: Every once in a while, a movie comes along and shifts the parameters of cinema, ushering in a new era for imitators to follow. In 2014, John Wick did that!

How an indie gamble became an action icon

independently made film struggled to find backing due to his recent box office flops and the directors’ inexperience. Lionsgate eventually picked it up, expecting a low-key release. The name change from Scorn to John Wic k stuck after Reeves used it repeatedly in interviews - free marketing that saved millions. Premiering in October 2014, John Wick exceeded expectations, earning critical praise and launching a pop culture juggernaut. The franchise now spans four films, a TV series ( The Continental ), comics, games, and the new spin-off Ballerina . Glenn Cochrane

H ollywood legend Keanu Reeves knows a good thing when he sees it, and John Wick was no exception. With blockbuster hits like Speed , The Matrix , and cult

Reeves’ agent passed the script to him. Reeves and writer Derek Kolstad spent six weeks rewriting it to

suit his style: less dialogue, more stylised action, and a younger character. Though already skilled, Reeves trained intensively in judo, jiu-jitsu, arnis, and tactical firearms with SWAT and Navy SEAL units. Stahelski and Leitch encouraged a new look too - longer hair, a beard, and a sleek, tailored wardrobe - to give John Wick a grittier edge and iconic silhouette. The film proudly wore its influences: Kurosawa, John Woo, Tarantino, Police Story, Lethal Weapon, and The Matrix all informed its style. Despite Reeves’ fame, the

favourites like Bill & Ted , Reeves brought decades of star power to the role, helping fuel the film’s success. But it was a gamble when Reeves recommended longtime stunt coordinators Chad Stahelski and David Leitch to co direct. Though they had extensive stunt and second-unit experience ( Fight Club, The Expendables ), neither had directed a feature. The project, originally titled Scorn , had circulated in Hollywood for years - at one point with Bruce Willis attached - before

• John Wick - Titans of Cult Edition steelbook is out now

LIKE THIS, YOU'LL LOVE THESE

John Wick: Chapter 2, John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum, John Wick: Chapter 4

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