John Carpenter Set To Score Upcoming Bong Joon Ho Horror Film

At a Q&A screening of John Carpenter’s The Thing, Mickey 17 director Bong Joon Ho, asked Carpenter to score his next horror film, and Carpenter delightfully agreed.

The screening of the film, which took place at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles on March 22, was personally hand-picked by director Bong Joon Ho himself, who has cited John Carpenter as an inspiration of his. Carpenter’s influence takes form in several of Joon Ho’s projects by exploring grisly, mature themes and tense atmospheres. 

The two sat down for a Q&A prior to the screening to a sold-out audience of fans and the conversation unfolded with Joon Ho gleefully praising Carpenter and his work. It was endearing to see two masters of their craft converse earnestly about each others’ art with nothing but adoration. Joon Ho led most of the conversation and at the very end, in a moment of blissfully unabashed fanboyism, asked Carpenter if he would like to score his upcoming horror film. Carpenter accepted without hesitation and the pair shook hands in a moment that seemed like a dream come true for everyone.

Carpenter, who often scores his own films, is no stranger to horror, having created some of the most memorable horror soundtracks of the last millennia, including They Live, Prince of Darkness, and most famously the Halloween franchise, starting with the iconic 1978 slasher of the same name. This film redefined the horror genre as a whole, with the pulsating piano notes of Michael Myer’s theme instilling fear into ears even when he wasn’t on screen. Carpenter’s ability to set an eerie and uneasy atmosphere solely through music set a benchmark for both film scoring and horror standards and is why he is regarded as one of the most influential composers of all time.

Combining a stinging Carpenter score with Joon Ho’s usual themes of socio-economic issues and then adding a horror element into the mix will prove to be an intensely thrilling collaboration like never before.

The details of Joon Ho’s upcoming horror film are not yet known, other than the newly formed director-composer partnership that just manifested itself. His next untitled feature however is set to be an animated film set in the ocean depths beneath Hawaii and on the island above. It follows a group of exotic deep-sea creatures set out on an adventure when their underwater oasis—and the people above—are threatened. It is allegedly set to become the most expensive Korean film ever made and has an estimated release date of 2027.

The Thing kicks off a series of screenings that highlight Bong Joon Ho’s filmography and the films that inspired it, spanning from The Host to the internationally-acclaimed Parasite, which won Best Picture at the 92nd Academy Awards and became the first ever international film to do so. These screenings are part of a first-of-its-kind exhibit dedicated to him that will run from March 23, 2025 to January 10, 2027 exclusively at the Academy Museum.

Bong Joon Ho’s newest film Mickey 17 is also now available to watch in theaters nationwide. The film stars Robert Pattinson, Naomi Ackie, Steven Yeun, Mark Ruffalo, and Toni Colette. 

Thanks for reading this article on John Carpenter and Bong Joon-Ho collaborating on his upcoming horror movie. For articles similar to this and for more movie news, make sure to check out our news section.