After becoming the first Korean film to win a Golden Globe, Parasite is making history once again as the first-ever Korean film to be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars.
The dark drama about class struggle, which was directed by Bong Joon-ho, received a total of six nominations for this year’s Academy Awards, including Best Director, Best Original Screeplay, Best International Feature Film, Best Production Design and Best Editing. It’s also been a hit at the box office, grossing nearly $150 million worldwide.
“This is a very rare and precious event to happen to Asian and Korean film, and I think for me what’s really important is that before all these nominations the film did really well at the box office once it was released in North America,” Bong told The Los Angeles Times. “To receive all these nominations along with a great box office is what truly makes me happy.”
Despite its numerous nominations, some critics are unhappy that the primary cast of Parasite — Song Kang-ho, Jang Hye-jin, Choi Woo-shik, Park So-dam — were snubbed, though Vox says this neglect “has been the status quo in Hollywood’s awards season.”
