A factory worker and his cousin abduct a female CEO believing her to be an alien in Yorgos Lanthimos’ surreal comedy-drama remake Bugonia.
Before things got bad
by Chris DrewBugonia
4.0 out of 5.0 stars
CAUTION: Here be spoilers
The plot of Bugonia is simple; Teddy (Jesse Plemons, Game Night, The Sisters Brothers) and Don (Aidan Delbis, feature debut) abduct Michelle Fuller (Emma Stone, Poor Things. La La Land, The Favourite) the high-powered CEO of the major pharmaceutical company where Teddy works in the factory.
Teddy, nervy, sweaty and bedraggled, is seeking vengeance for his mother Sandy (Alicia Silverstone, Clueless) being in a coma which he blames on Michelle’s company, and he also believes Michelle to be an alien.
Teddy’s plan is for Michelle to grant passage to speak to the emperor in four days, at the lunar eclipse, to ask them to leave Earth.
Waking to discover her head has been shaved – Teddy tells her to prevent her contacting her ship – Michelle displays fear, confusion and distress but also has confidence in herself and her ability to be in charge. She and Teddy have a number of compelling debates as they wage a battle of intellects.
Don is a tragic figure, the uncertain but loyal follower. When Teddy tells him the plan for chemical castration, he quietly says he hoped to experience being with someone one day.
Michelle is put through harrowing trauma in the basement, which Don struggles with, before Teddy believes she shares the emperor’s blood and allows her to stay in the house.
The hunt for Michelle is not played for suspense, we just see Teddy watching news coverage and the only law enforcement we are shown is Casey (Stavros Halkias, Let’s Start a Cult), an old acquaintance of Teddy.
Casey is Teddy’s former babysitter, and an almost off-hand line reveals he abused Teddy, adding another layer of trauma. (Perhaps casting a slightly older actor as Casey would have been more convincing),
Teddy, desperate to stay in charge, believes Michelle’s story and uses a bottle of anti-freeze to try and cure his mother, which predictably does not go well.
There are sudden blasts of shocking bloody violence, as well as from the bombastic score, leading to a memorably divisive ending which audiences will disagree on.
The trademark Lanthimos dark humour is gloriously evident throughout; from Teddy and Don wearing Jennifer Aniston masks during the abduction to (in imagined flashback) Michelle flippantly saying “this one is on us” when offering compensation for what happened to Teddy’s mother.
Remaking Jang Joon-hwan’s Save the Green Planet!, Lanthimos once again gets terrific performances from his cast with Plemons and Stone both superb and Delbis, with his incredible mop of curls, being a wonderful find.
Working both as a commentary on conspiracy theories and the gap between those at the top and the bottom of the tree, Bugonia is another must-watch from Lanthimos.
Bugonia screened as a UK Premiere at the 2025 BFI London Film Festival on 10, 11 and 17 October 2025. The film is released on 31 October 2025 in the UK.
