Bong Joon Ho's celebrated 2006 monster film, The Host, is set to return to theaters in a remastered 4K version on November 20, 2026. Magnolia Pictures will handle the re-release, which will include a special feature: an exclusive conversation with director Bong Joon Ho.
The Host tells the story of Gang-du, a food stand operator who witnesses a colossal amphibian creature emerge from Seoul's Han River and attack bystanders, including his daughter. The government swiftly intervenes, declaring the monster a carrier of an unknown virus and imposing a quarantine. However, Gang-du receives a call from his daughter, whom he believed to be dead, spurring him to rescue her while evading government restrictions.
The film marked Bong Joon Ho's third feature, following Barking Dogs Never Bite and Memories of Murder. The Host was a significant commercial success, becoming one of the highest-grossing South Korean films of all time with nearly $100 million earned against an $11 million budget. It garnered widespread critical acclaim for its unique blend of satire, humor, and monster-movie thrills, offering a biting critique of American imperialism and serving as a modern parallel to Godzilla.
Since The Host, Bong Joon Ho has directed other notable films such as Mother, Snowpiercer, and Okja. His 2019 masterpiece, Parasite, made history as the first non-English-language film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Bong Joon Ho's next project, an animated family film titled Ally, is expected in 2027. The movie features a piglet squid named Ally on an adventure to see the sun and stars voice performances from Alex Jayne Go, Ayo Edebiri, Bradley Cooper, and Dave Bautista. This marks a departure into family-friendly territory for the director, though his previous works suggest a strong artistic vision regardless of genre.