Empire Magazine Issue 434 (December 2024) Mickey 17

Buckle up, everyone: Bong Joon Ho is back. The Korean auteur finally returns after sweeping the Oscars with Parasite, and he’s going full-tilt into bonkers satirical sci-fi mode with Mickey 17, starring multiple Robert Pattinsons. Two of which – Mickey 17 and Mickey 18 – you’ll find on the cover of Empire’s December 2024 issue.

Mickey 17 - Parasite brought Bong Joon Ho into the big-leagues. Next, he’s going interstellar with a Hollywood budget in a space-bound genre-smasher. Empire speaks to Director Bong, stars Robert Pattinson, Steven Yeun, and Naomi Ackie about going bigger – and Bong-ier – than ever before.

The Future Of Cinema - Between the impact of COVID, rise of streaming, and dawn of AI, the entire medium of cinema is undergoing several major shifts right now. Empire conducts a major new poll of filmmakers in Hollywood and beyond, asking the big questions on what’s happening in the industry, and where it all leads.

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew - The next Star Wars series boasts a team of major directorial talent: Jon Watts, Bryce Dallas Howard, Lee Isaac Chung, David Lowery, Jake Schreier, and Daniels. Empire assembles the whole crew (sans Daniels, lost in the multiverse) for a roundtable interview about the galaxy far, far away.

Dune: Prophecy - Long before Paul Atreides, the Bene Gesserit were already hatching their galaxy-shaping plans. Empire goes inside the six-part series exploring the origin of the sisterhood, uncovering the tangled saga of its own creation.

Mufasa: The Lion King - How does Barry Jenkins go from making Moonlight to prequelising a Disney classic? The director speaks to Empire about his epic journey to the Pride Lands, getting to grips with a new way of filmmaking, and paying tribute to the beloved original.

Cynthia Erivo - The powerhouse performer is about to take centre stage in Wicked, as the green-skinned Elphaba. In a major new career-spanning interview, she tells Empire about being an outsider, singing with Ariana Grande, and working with cinematic legends.

Nightbitch - Marielle Heller is back with the mother of all black comedies – in which Amy Adams plays a mum convinced she’s turning into a dog. Empire speaks to Heller and Adams about the fur and the fury.

First Word - This month’s news section gets the latest word on Middle-earth from Philippa Boyens; takes a closer look at Timothée Chalamet’s Bob Dylan with A Complete Unknown director James Mangold; tours Nosferatu’s abode with Robert Eggers; gets under the cloak of papal thriller Conclave; pores over the trailer for chimp-centric Robbie Williams biopic Better Man; gets a pint (of milk) with Danny Dyer; and much more.

Final Cut - In the home entertainment section, we talk the gargantuan success of Inside Out 2 with director Kelsey Mann; revisit the entire Elm Street saga with Robert Englund; go kill-by-kill on In A Violent Nature; rank the Saw movies; get behind the wheel of Will & Harper with Will Ferrell and Harper Steele; give The Princess Bride the masterpiece treament; and plenty more.

Reviews - Reviews in this issue include Steve McQueen’s blazing war drama Blitz; Sean Baker’s romantic crime drama Anora; August Wilson adaptation The Piano Lesson; genre-shifting crime musical Emila Pérez; documentary Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story; Pedro Almodóvar’s The Room Next Door; superhero satire The Franchise; and many more.

Check out the Empire website.