When Jang Joon Hwan’s production team CJ Entertainment save green planetthey had the idea to remake the 2003 Korean science fiction comedy, but they didn’t expect it to be such a hit.
This was before the release of Bong Joon-ho’s multi-Oscar-winning film parasitesbefore Korean cinema exploded around the world, and before CJ Entertainment became one of the world’s largest production companies with its 2022 acquisition of Endeavor Content (now in its fifth season).
“[CJ ENM] Jerry Jerry Ko, head of the film department of CJ ENM, said at the 2024 Busan International Film Festival “Navigating New Paradigms” forum:
“We believed from the beginning that the concept of this film was ahead of its time and [maybe we] An independent film could be made, but as we toured Hollywood we realized there were many hidden fans of the original film. I happened to be in Los Angeles and saw Ari Aster hosting a screening save green planet at a theater, so I contacted him and asked him to be a part of the production. So he came on board as a producer,” Ko said. “So Will Tracy, screenwriter successiongot on board and wrote the story. Since then, public opinion has begun to build. Later Yorgos Lanthimos and some great actors came on board.
Bugonia Currently in production, Lanthimos’ long-time collaborator Emma Stone stars alongside her Kinds of Kindness Co-stars Jesse Plemons. The Hollywood remake is a unique collaboration with a major Korean production distributor and is being developed by CJ ENM and Ari Aster and Lars Knudsen’s Square Peg banner. Focus Features, a unit of Universal Pictures, will co-finance and distribute the film globally (excluding South Korea). The film will be released in the United States on November 7 next year.
CJ ENM CEO Jerry Ko speaks at the 2024 Busan International Film Festival.
save green planet was released in South Korea in 2003 and continues to be recognized by critics and audiences on the film festival circuit. This Hollywood remake tells the story of two conspiracy theory-obsessed protagonists who kidnap the CEO of a major pharmaceutical company, convinced that he is an alien trying to destroy the Earth.
“The purpose of launching this project is to revive Director Zhang’s imagination, which was not fully valued 20 years ago. This imagination was ahead of its time,” Gao said. “The movie grew into a bigger movie than we originally thought. By having people on our side who understood the potential of the movie, we were able to create a buzz.
Kao Ye, head of Korean film production at CJ ENM, believes that Korean storytelling is popular globally because local creators are good at mixing genres to create fresh and flavorful stories and visuals.
“It’s attractive because it’s culturally unique while communicating with a universal film language that Hollywood filmmakers can understand,” Ko said. “We have been exploring various global exposure methods such as Hollywood remakes and localization of popular IPs. If Korean creators come up with stories that they can do well, we will help them expand overseas in a way that suits the nature of each work.
At the Busan Film Festival Forum, CJ ENM also promoted other titles in its 2025 lineup, including director Park Chan-wook’s new film no choice (working title), a series adaptation of the film manufacturing city, and Looking back on love, It is planned to be launched on Korean streaming media Tving in the first half of next year.
