'Bugonia' Ending Explained: What That Shocking [SPOILER] Means

"At the end of Save the Green Planet! the twisted 2003 Korean sci-fi black comedy directed by Jang Joon-hwan, the CEO kidnapped by a conspiracy theorist who believes him to be an alien in disguise is revealed to be... an alien in disguise. Escaping from his captor, the CEO returns to his alien spaceship and orders the destruction of Earth, having become disgusted with the "failed experiment" that is humanity."

"But even with an ending that remains very similar to the original, Tracy tells Inverse that he and Lanthimos never considered changing it to make it more palatable for U.S. audiences. "There was never really a discussion about changing the ending or having a backup ending," Tracy says. "The ending that we have is quite a strong flavor.""

"Throughout Bugonia, we're kept in a state of uncertainty as to whether Jesse Plemons' Teddy Gatz, a conspiracy theory-obsessed beekeeper, is right or not in his belief that Stone's Michelle Fuller is actually an alien. He has all the makings of a delusional lunatic: he regularly listens to conspiracy podcasts, makes wild statements about aliens that can communicate with their hair, and of course, kidnaps Michelle and imprisons her in his basement."

The remake of Save the Green Planet! (titled Bugonia) keeps the original's shocking twist that the CEO is an actual alien who returns to his ship and destroys Earth. Yorgos Lanthimos directs the update, with Will Tracy writing and Emma Stone cast as the gender-swapped CEO. The story centers on Teddy Gatz, a conspiracy-obsessed beekeeper who kidnaps Michelle Fuller and holds her in his basement while audiences remain unsure whether his beliefs are delusional. The film modernizes context and tone while retaining the original's uncompromising, bleak conclusion that now resonates in a contemporary setting.

Read at Inverse