Following his historic Oscar wins for Parasite, there was much discussion on what Bong Joon Ho would do next–but he had actually already told us. “I’m preparing two different projects. One is a Korean-language one, and the other one is an English-language one. Both projects are not big films. They’re the size of Parasite or Mother, he told Variety last fall.
He added, “The Korean film is located in Seoul and has unique elements of horror and action. It’s difficult to define the genre of my films. The English project is a drama film based on a true event that happened in 2016. Of course I won’t know until I finish the script, but it has to be set half in the U.K. and half in the U.S.”
While further details on either film have yet to be revealed, likely due to the fact the South Korean director has been tied up with the awards season for the better part of the last year, he has now divulged another genre he’d like to tackle and it’s the perfect one to lift our currently downtrodden spirits.
“I would love to make a musical,” he told Empire. “Characters would begin singing, then think, ‘Oh my God, fuck this, this is too cheesy,’ and stop suddenly. There are amazing musical films, like Singin’ In The Rain. But when I watch them, I feel very embarrassed and start blushing. So it would have to be… different.”
Bong has been known to upend expectations with each new film, so we’re mighty curious what he might have in store if he decides to go down this direction. Another filmmaker on last year’s awards circuit shared Bong’s musical desires, as Greta Gerwig told Variety she’s also working one, saying “One thing I feel that the world is really missing right now is tap dancing. I’m just going to say that.”
We imagine both of these projects will take on very different forms, so stay tuned for updates. In the meantime, check out Bong Joon Ho’s picks for the 20 directors that will define the next decade of filmmaking at Sight & Sound.