‘Parasite’ Series Makes Drastic Change From Oscar-Winning Film

The forthcoming Parasite television series is making a drastic change from the Oscar-winning film. In 2020, it was announced that the film would be adapted for American television, with director/co-writer Bong Joon-Ho working alongside filmmaker Adam McKay (The Big Short, Succession) to bring the project to life. Now, McKay has spoken out about how the series is coming along and he revealed how it will differ from the 2019 film.

Speaking to Josh Horowitz on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, McKay revealed that the new HBO series will not be a remake of Bong’s film, rather it will be “an original series” that is “in the same universe as the feature.” He then clarified that the series tells “an original story that lives in that same world.” McKay also shared an update on the show’s pre-production, saying, “We’re just having the best time. We’ve just staffed up with an incredible writers’ room.”

McKay also explained how he’s approaching scripting the series, which he hopes will turn out like an extended movie. “I basically outlined the series with director Bong during the quarantine, with him overseeing,” McKay said. He added, “I had all these key ideas accumulated from when I started writing the script. I just couldn’t include all those ideas in the two-hour running time of the film, so they’re all stored in my iPad and my goal with this limited series is to create a six-hour-long film.”

Finally, McKay praised the opportunity to work with Bong on the new series. “Occasionally in life, you get very lucky, and for me to get to work anywhere near director Bong’s orbit — usually, when I hear people say ‘I’m honored,’ it sounds like bullshit to me, but I’m legitimately honored,” he said. “And having a blast.”

At this time, there is no word on when the new Parasite series may debut, but it has been confirmed that Tilda Swinton will be one of the main cast members. There have also been reports that Mark Ruffalo is being considered as well. Earlier this year, Bong spoke out about the plans for his Parasite follow-ups, revealing that he had two completed scripts: one set in Seoul and the other likely to be “set half in the U.K. and half in the U.S.” It is unclear if these scripts are related to the new series, or if they are separate projects.