Bong Joon Ho's Mickey 17 may star multiple Robert Pattinsons and Mark Ruffalo as Space Trump, but the real scene-stealers are none other than the film's creepers.
Inhabitants of the ice planet Niflheim, the creepers are what you'd get if you crossed roly-polies with the Graboids from Tremors. They vary in size, with each life stage coming with its own unique qualities.
The babies, for example, evoke the cuteness of another great Bong creature: super pig Okja. (Mickey 17's creature designer Jang Heechul also worked on Okja and Bong's first creature feature, The Host.) Meanwhile, Bong told Letterboxd that the intimidating Mama Creeper was inspired by The Godfather's Vito Corleone. Her maternal fierceness and leadership instinct also calls to mind Aliens' xenomorph queen, albeit less bloodthirsty. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Bong revealed that other major inspirations for the creepers included everything from croissants and bison to puppies and armadillos.
All these traits combine to create an instantly memorable sci-fi creature that, like the marvelous Dune sandworms, pulls focus from its human castmates whenever it's onscreen. And as the press tour for Mickey 17 got underway, the creepers' scene-stealing tendencies extended to real life.
While no actual creepers could hit the road with Mickey 17's stars (I wish!), plush baby creepers did pop up throughout the press tour. Check out the creeper plush's majestically cute red carpet debut:
Then, feast your eyes on Ruffalo, Bong, Naomi Ackie, and Steven Yeun playing with the baby creepers:
Robert Pattinson is even holding a creeper plush like it's his evening handbag during a red carpet interview.
Cute and they make the perfect accessory? Say less!
Comments under any creeper-centric video rightfully celebrate these plush creatures and ask where they can be bought. But while there are some unofficial, likely scam websites claiming to sell them (an offer I trust about as much as I trust Ruffalo's villainous Kenneth Marshall), there is no official way to buy your own baby creeper plush yet. Mashable has reached out to Warner Bros. for further information on if and when Mickey 17's creeper plushes will be made available to the public.
Hopefully it's soon, because it's clear the people yearn for creeper plushes. And after their stunning debut on the Mickey 17 press run, who can blame them?
