Naomi Ackie and Toni Collette on co-starring in Bong Joon Ho’s revolutionary fable Mickey 17

Set in a distant future where humanity struggles to survive, Bong Joon Ho’s latest film Mickey 17 follows Mickey (played by Robert Pattinson), a disposable “expendable” clone sent on a treacherous mission. Through his connections with those around him (human and alien), he inadvertently sparks a revolutionary movement far greater than anyone could have imagined. 

The film co-stars Naomi Ackie as an inspiring revolutionary character and Toni Collette, who steps into the shoes of a delightfully eccentric villain. In an interview on Zoom, the duo offered a glimpse into the film’s themes, their characters and the creative process behind bringing director Bong’s first film since his Oscar-winning Parasite to the big screen. 

For Ackie, the heart of Mickey 17 lies in its exploration of the value of life — human, animal and even alien. “When I read the script, that was what really shone out to me,” she says. “This idea of the value in all beings, things that we don’t know and aren’t aware of. That message was strong.” Her character, Nasha, begins her journey with a simple connection to Mickey, but it quickly grows into something much larger. “For her, it starts with Mickey, and it doesn’t seem like a big deal,” Ackie explains. “She’s like, ‘Yeah, that’s my guy,’ and she wants to defend that. From that grows this thing of wanting to defend everything else.”

What makes Nasha so compelling, Ackie notes, is her unintentional evolution into a revolutionary figure. “It wasn’t intended,” she says with a laugh. “But I think that’s how it starts.” Ackie’s portrayal of Nasha is both inspiring and relatable, offering a blueprint for how small acts of connection can lead to larger movements. “Mickey isn’t necessarily the hero you think he would be by the end of the film,” she says. “But it’s like, everyone can do that. We’re not all going to be out here saving the world, but how can you save your community? How can you save your family? How can you activate yourself, as a normal human being, to do something?”

On the other end of the spectrum is Toni Collette’s character Gwen Johansen, the wife of Mark Ruffalo’s Kenneth Marshall. An eccentric villain with a quirky obsession with sauces, Gwen adds a fascinating layer of menace and dark humour to the story. “That was the joy of it,” Collette says. “There’s so much to play with. Everything comes with a smile, but there’s a lot of prickly energy underneath, ulterior motives, the need to control and manipulate.” The sauce obsession, she explains, represents an “inane kind of priority” that reflects her character’s detachment from reality. “Given the circumstances of their living on the ship, they’ve got their own little luxurious bubble that has nothing to do with reality,” Collette says. “And I think that’s how she lives generally, actually.”

Collette’s ability to balance the quirky and the menacing is once again a testament to her skill as an actor, and her character serves as a dark counterpoint to Ackie’s hopeful revolutionary. Naomi’s character embodies a kind of resistance to the commodified self, offering a glimpse of how younger generations might break free from the pervasive logic of the status quo (capitalism) and reclaim a new sense of authenticity. In contrast, Collette’s character becomes a cautionary figure, her traits revealing the dangers of internalizing capitalist values, where identity is reduced to a consumable product, and life itself is stripped of any value, depth and meaning, distilled into nothing more than experimental, molecular-gastronomy-style sauces for the elite’s indulgence. Together, they illustrate the tension between human exploitation, alienation and the possibility of revolutionary connection.

At its core, Mickey 17 is a story about survival and morality, but it’s also a call to action. Both Ackie and Collette emphasize the importance of community and personal power in a world that often feels divided. “People aren’t encouraged to nurture their own sense of personal power,” Collette says. “In these times, when everybody’s so individualistic, having stories that indulge the community sense and looking out for others is very important.” Ackie echoes this sentiment, adding, “It’s about building connections and letting that grow into something really special. That’s how change happens.”

It’s clear that Mickey 17 is more than just another Hollywood sci-fi spectacle. It’s a reflection of the capitalist world we live in, a world where mere survival often feels like the only option, and connection is a radical act. Through its exploration of revolution, the fragility of life and the transformative power of community, the film challenges us to question the systems that reduce us to mere commodities and imagine what it might mean to truly live as a community, rather than simply endure as an individual.

With Naomi Ackie and Toni Collette delivering performances that are as nuanced as they are captivating, Mickey 17 doesn’t just entertain — it lingers, inviting us to consider how small acts of resistance and solidarity can spark profound change. Long after the credits roll, the film’s questions remain: What are we willing to fight for, and who do we become when we dare to care? ■

Mickey 17 opens in Montreal theatres on Friday, March 7

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