Summary

• Mickey 17 promises a unique, cerebral sci-fi experience that could reverse Robert Pattinson's divisive sci-fi streak.
• Director Bong Joon-ho's involvement and major stars like Toni Collette boost expectations for Mickey 17's success.
• With a reported $150 million budget and Pattinson in the lead, Mickey 17 could finally break his awkward career sci-fi streak.

Robert Pattinson's starring role in upcoming sci-fi project Mickey 17 is exciting on its own terms, but also has the potential to help the actor break an unwanted Rotten Tomatoes streak stretching back 10 years. Set for release in 2025, the movie promises to be a cerebral sci-fi, combining existential themes of mortality and human nature with a talented cast and crew. With an intriguing setup and high-profile personnel involved, the evidence suggests that Mickey 17 could be the movie to fix one of Pattinson's more surprising career records.

Despite achieving recognition for his commercially appealing performance as Edward Cullen in the Twilight series, Pattinson has established his reputation as an actor through a variety of challenging, unconventional roles. Although he has still worked on mainstream projects – notably Matt Reeves' The Batman, in which he played the titular lead role – his most successful roles have arguably come in independent movies like Good Time and The Lighthouse. However, for all his success, one genre has proved particularly problematic for Pattinson – a problem that Mickey 17 can fix.

Robert Pattinson's Sci-Fi Movies Have Been Divisive On Rotten Tomatoes

While by no means complete failures, Robert Pattinson's sci-fi movies, dating back to 2014, have failed to universally impress either critics or audiences. His three forays into the genre (The Rover, High Life, and Tenet) have all received mixed reviews and failed to establish Pattinson's reputation as a leading sci-fi genre star. While each film has its positives, Pattinson's projects have been unpredictable for reasons that extend beyond their potentially polarizing content and story.

Although Pattinson himself has never been held responsible for his sci-fi movies' shortcomings, his involvement represents a worrying recurring trend. 2014's The Rover, for instance, was criticized for a convoluted story and nonsensical narrative elements, while High Life was praised by critics yet failed to resonate with audiences. Tenet, meanwhile failed to astound either group, comparatively receiving some of the worst reviews of director Christopher Nolan's career. All this suggests that for all his success elsewhere, Pattinson is still in need of a certifiable sci-fi hit.

What We Know About Robert Pattinson's Next Movie, Mickey 17

Although details remain sketchy, the Mickey 17 has the potential to reverse Pattinson's sci-fi difficulties. Based on author Edward Ashton's original novel Mickey7, the movie will follow the same premise of an "expendable" worker sent on a dangerous mission into outer space. The twist is that, thanks to an advanced alternative to cloning known as "body printing", every time the worker is killed he is simply replaced by another version, with most of the earlier iteration's memories still intact. This essentially renders Mickey immortal, although his immortality is both contingent and subservient.

Excitingly, the film represents a return to sci-fi for acclaimed director Bong Joon-ho, who is widely hailed as one of the most successful and influential modern directors. His previous forays into the genre include celebrated works like Snowpiercer and Okja, both of which incorporate existential themes akin to Mickey 17's premise. The film also features major stars Toni Collette and Mark Ruffalo, while footage from CinemaCon was warmly received by attendees, heightening expectation and excitement ahead of the movie's 2025 release date.

Why Mickey 17 Can Break Robert Pattinson's Divisive Sci-Fi Trend

In many ways, Mickey 17 feels like the best chance Pattinson will have to break his awkward career streak. Not only does director Bong's track record indicate that the film has every chance of achieving major critical success, but the film's reported budget of $150 million indicates that it will be geared toward broad audience appeal. Unlike Pattinson's previous big-budget sci-fi movie, Tenet, the film's premise seems to be easily digestible, despite its high concept. This combination could provide the winning formula that has so far eluded Pattinson.

The fact that Pattinson himself is playing the lead role in the movie also means that Mickey 17 could be a box office hit. Pattinson has consistently proven that he has a broad audience appeal. The Batman, for example, made nearly $800 million at the global box office, while the Twilight series netted over $3.3 billion across five movies. While Pattinson has previously only played the lead in the deliberately provocative sci-fi horror High Life, placing him front and center for Mickey 17 could help the movie benefit from Pattinson's clear appeal.