Emma Stone's Bugonia Lands on Peacock This December

Emma Stone's latest venture into science fiction territory is heading straight to your living room this holiday season. The psychological thriller that has critics raving will make its streaming debut on Peacock come December 26, giving viewers the perfect post-Christmas entertainment.

Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, this mind-bending story centers on a corporate executive who finds herself at the mercy of two young conspiracy theorists convinced she's an extraterrestrial threat to humanity. The plot draws inspiration from the 2003 Korean film Save the Green Planet!, though Lanthimos puts his own distinctive spin on the material.

Critical Success and Awards Buzz

The film has earned remarkable praise from reviewers, boasting an impressive 97% rating on Rotten Tomatoes alongside an 84% audience score. Critics have described it as a sharp commentary on today's divided political landscape, with one review calling it a "dark, discomforting satire for our polarized political era."

Following its theatrical release on Halloween 2025, the movie has generated significant awards season speculation. Both Stone and Lanthimos are expected to receive major nominations for their collaborative work on this conspiracy-driven narrative.

Pandemic-Inspired Storytelling

Screenwriter Will Tracy crafted the script during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, drawing from the widespread feelings of uncertainty and mistrust that defined that period. Tracy explained how the atmosphere influenced his writing process:

"I wrote the film sort of during the heat of COVID, and in some ways I still feel like we're living downstream from those moments, from those months. And that feeling of isolation, paranoia, confusion, not quite sure what story to believe, the official story, the unofficial story, every story that you're sort of being told doesn't really feel satisfying and doesn't really feel like it's leading you towards anything productive, either for you or your community."

Complex Characters with Noble Intentions

The cast includes Jesse Plemons, Aidan Delbis, Stavros Halkias, and Alicia Silverstone alongside Stone. Tracy emphasized that despite the dark turns the story takes, each character operates from a place of genuine concern:

"How else do you, you know, when you look around the world and see everything that's wrong, how do you live in that? You could just put on your blinders and try to make money, you put on your blinders and distract yourself, or you could try to do something... Everyone in the movie is on a mission to save something."

The official synopsis reads: "Two conspiracy obsessed young men kidnap the high-powered CEO of a major company, convinced that she is an alien intent on destroying planet Earth."