Has the Oscars Curse Finally Claimed Bong Joon Ho and ‘Mickey 17’?

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Filmmakers and studio executives, be warned: a long-suspected Oscars curse may in fact be real.

Over the last 13 years, most directors who won for their best work have often seen their subsequent movies flop at the box office or upset viewers. These films, in turn, have brought the ecstasy of a career-peaking achievement down to earth with the harsh truth of modern audiences’ ever-changing and unforeseeable preferences.

Upon examination, it’s evident that the follow-up films to notable movies have struggled: Ang Lee’s “Life of Pi” (2012) successor “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk” (2016) flopped at the box office. Damien Chazelle’s “La La Land” (2016) follow-up, “First Man” (2018), missed its mark. Guillermo del Toro’s Academy Award-winning film “The Shape of Water” (2018) was followed by “Nightmare Alley” (2021), which fell short of recouping its budget. Chloé Zhao, whose work on “Nomadland” (2020) was stunning, released the potential blockbuster starter for a superhero franchise, “Eternals” (2021). Unfortunately, this film didn’t fare well upon release.

Previously assumed as a potential curse on successful film directors has been brought to light more clearly in recent times. This so-called curse was hinted at as early as 1980 with the financially disastrous Western film “Heaven’s Gate,” produced by Michael Cimino after his success with “The Deer Hunter.” More recently, Bong Joon Ho‘s big-budget sci-fi project, “Mickey 17,” has added weight to this theory of a directorial curse.

The Robert Pattinson-starring science fiction dark comedy, distributed by Warner Bros., is highly likely to incur significant losses during its theatrical release. Currently, the film, which had an initial budget of $118 million (including a costly marketing effort), has only earned $40.8 million domestically and $110.7 million worldwide.

Bong Joon-ho, a renowned South Korean filmmaker, gained widespread acclaim for his masterpiece, “Parasite,” a skillfully crafted and politically charged suspense thriller that criticized capitalism. This film brought him fame at Cannes in 2018 and then at the Oscars the following year, where it won the Palme d’Or and an unexpected four awards. That night was filled with joy for Bong, and for foreign language cinema, as he gleefully displayed his little golden statuettes, charming onlookers by encouraging them to kiss each other from the press stage. Unbeknownst to him, the curse had already taken hold.

As a die-hard movie enthusiast, I couldn’t help but feel thrilled when I heard about this prestigious award you’ve won. It’s like the ultimate recognition from Hollywood, and let me tell you, it speaks volumes about your talent. However, if you’re not careful, this success can become a double-edged sword. Few individuals, whether artists or otherwise, possess the unique ability to maintain a balanced perspective towards their work.

Filmmakers who win the Directing Oscar often have significant control over their next project due to their newfound influence. For example, Bong asserted that he had final say in the editing of ‘Mickey 17’. It’s possible that some directors accept the financial offers immediately following the Oscars ceremony, only to later find themselves in a precarious situation and face failure, much like flying too close to the sun and crashing.

In the year 2016, Lee’s significant professional misstep, titled “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk,” came after he had won an Oscar for directing “Life of Pi.” This film about the Iraq War was met with critical disdain and was a financial flop. The failure can largely be attributed to overconfidence, particularly in relation to the allure of new movie-making technology. Lee, a highly skilled filmmaker who had previously won an Oscar for directing “Brokeback Mountain,” decided to further showcase his technical prowess, which had earned him an Academy Award for “Life of Pi.” He did this by shooting the drama as the first film ever made using a high frame rate of 120 frames per second. Additionally, he incorporated 3D format at a resolution of 4K Ultra High Definition.

The disappointing $2 million domestic earnings for Lee’s film might partly be attributed to his daring choice regarding its frame rate. Finding suitable projectors and screens for theaters was challenging, even during its debut at the New York Film Festival. This resulted in only five theaters worldwide showing the film as intended, and despite this, it failed to win over critics. Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian criticized the movie’s frame rate, stating that it appeared “artificially fake” and was quite distracting, while the narrative “didn’t lead to any interesting destination at all.

Lee’s budget for the movie “Billy Lynn” roughly matched the total earnings from “Nightmare Alley”, a film directed by Guillermo del Toro that was set in the 1940s and fell into the genre of neo-noir psychological thriller. This movie was released after his Oscar-winning production, “The Shape of Water,” which was a romantic drama about a woman and a fish-man. Del Toro won Oscars for best picture and best director with this film. Despite the big-name cast (Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara among others) and its December release, which usually indicates potential success, “Nightmare Alley” only made $40 million domestically, while its production cost was $60 million.

The film Nightmare Alley faced similar challenges as Damien Chazelle’s next project, First Man, did after La La Land. Both films, directed by Oscar-winning directors Guillermo del Toro and Chazelle respectively, were criticized for their lengthy runtimes (150 minutes for Nightmare Alley and 140 minutes for First Man). Additionally, similar controversy arose over Chazelle’s decision not to include an image of Neil Armstrong planting the American flag on the moon in First Man. When questioned about this decision, Chazelle stated that it was not a political statement but rather an intentional choice to focus on Armstrong’s solitary moments on the moon.

As a gamer, I’ve got to say that despite some potential factors affecting its performance, both directors delivered films that looked promising on paper, boasted stellar casts, and garnered critical acclaim. However, there were instances where it seemed like certain scenes just didn’t quite hit the mark with audiences. To put it in gaming terms, it felt like we were stuck in a loop, watching similar scenes play out again and again, which left us yearning for something fresh and exciting. Richard Lawson from Vanity Fair captured this sentiment perfectly when he said that the film had a curious drag, making us want to shout at the screen for more variety.

After that, Zhao moved on to Eternals, her successor to Nomadland. By the time she walked onto the stage at the Dolby Theater to receive her award, Eternals was already in post-production. It could be that the curse struck a bit prematurely for her, or it might just be the Peter Principle in action, with some talents – which Zhao certainly possesses in abundance – not always transferable.

Interestingly, or perhaps significantly, two film directors stand out as exceptions to this persistent trend: renowned Mexican cinema masters Alejandro Iñárritu and Alfonso Cuarón. Both have received the Directing Oscar on two separate occasions over the past twelve years. However, they managed to avoid this trend with their subsequent films.

Two renowned filmmakers, Iñárritu and Cuarón, each received their first Oscars for their grandest productions to date – Iñárritu for the acclaimed comedy-drama “Birdman” and Cuarón for the pulse-pounding space drama “Gravity”. Following his victory with “Birdman”, Iñárritu continued to impress with “The Revenant”, an achievement rarely seen, as he went on to win consecutive directing Oscars.

Eventually, these two gentlemen chose to delve into their individual pasts to revisit the highlights of their professional lives. Iñárritu unveiled 2022’s controversial yet undeniably unique film titled “Bardo”, while Cuarón presented “Roma”, a poignant reflection on his childhood memories centered around an unacknowledged nanny and housekeeper. This masterpiece earned him his second Academy Award for Best Director, and it is often hailed as a timeless cinematic treasure.

A key takeaway from films is that curses are meant to be shattered, and Mickey 17 by Bong certainly won’t be his final work, even though it shares an unfortunate similarity with its protagonist who repeatedly dies. Similarly, several recent best director award recipients such as Jane Campion (The Power of the Dog), The Daniels (Everything Everywhere All At Once), Christopher Nolan (Oppenheimer), and Sean Barker (Anora) have yet to release their next projects, but they all have a chance to break free from this pattern.

Hey there! It’s possible this curse isn’t legit and something else is at play here. Doherty hints to THR that winning the Best Director Oscar might cast a halo over a filmmaker, which could potentially set up their next project for failure.

He wonders if those collaborating with the director-producers, writers, and actors might feel intimidated by his/her industry-acclaimed genius, making them less likely to challenge his/her decisions. In the old days of studio production, a mogul could simply instruct a director under contract that the movie was too long and required 25 minutes of cuts – no questions asked. Is there anyone today bold enough to tell Martin Scorsese or Christopher Nolan the same?

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2025-03-28 01:25