In a recent interview with Collider, Steven Yeun discussed being cast in the upcoming sci-fi adaptation Mickey 17 and praised its director, Bong Joon-ho, calling him “imaginative.” His new film Mickey 17 based on the 2022 novel Mickey7 by Edward Ashton, follows a financially destitute man who, desperate to get off Earth, signs up as an “expendable”, a lowly position that is given the most dangerous assignments on alien worlds and is replaced with a clone every time that he dies. But when one clone, the titular Mickey 17, is mistakenly left for dead, he and the next clone in line, Mickey 18, must work together to fight back when the government tries to keep the status quo.

Cast in the film as Berto, and having previously acted in Joon-ho’s Okja, Yeun explained what drew him to the project and why he wanted to work with the award-winning director of Parasite again, saying:

“I mean, really, it was Bong. Every time it’s Bong, you know…it’s genuinely an incredible experience. He’s a masterful, genius storyteller, and when you guys see this film, you guys will see that under the right hands like this, I think worlds can be built, and imagination knows no bounds.”

This praise comes despite reports of trouble behind the scenes as Mickey 17‘s release date has been moved four times, originally being slated for March 29, 2024, partially due to Joon-ho arguing with Warner Bros. executives over the film’s final cut, which the director has control of, as well as to give the film’s star, Robert Pattinson, enough time in his busy schedule to promote it.

Along with Yeun and Pattison, Mickey 17 will also star Mark Ruffalo and Toni Collette and is set for release on March 7, 2025.