The Best Sex Scene of the Year Is Surprisingly Trumpian

Bong Joon-Ho is a director with no interest in subtlety. Even the premises of his films are inherently loaded. Snowpiercer is about a globe-spanning train (in a world frozen over by global warming) where people are separated by class. In Parasite, a working-class family collides with an ultra-wealthy one. And Okja is about a beloved animal being exploited for corporate profits. Joon-Ho has politics coursing through his veins, so it’s not surprising his latest film Mickey 17 is hugely political too.

It is surprising, though, that politics come through so explicitly during a sex scene.

In a world where Earth is becoming increasingly uninhabitable, the broke, down-on-his-luck Mickey (Robert Pattinson) signs up to travel on a ship to the uninhabited planet of Niflheim. It’s a four-year journey, but it’s an opportunity to start a whole new life somewhere else. Luckily he’s found someone to make the wait less agonizing: Security Officer Nasha (Naomi Ackie). The two form a near-instant connection, and since the journey to Niflheim takes four years and there’s not much to do outside of their jobs, things get physical quickly.

But sex is something that’s not allowed on the ship, a message delivered by politician Kenneth Marshall (Mark Ruffalo). See, sex uses too many calories, and they’ll have to conserve as much energy as possible to ensure they make the journey. No sex of any kind can happen—thems the breaks.

Everyone is shocked at this news (they certainly didn’t know about it when they signed up for the mission), but it’s a sacrifice Marshall is willing to make—on their behalf.

But Mickey and Nasha aren’t listening. They’re already having sex. There’s a tenderness to start the proceedings, with the pair undressing as the excitement builds. Things quickly get passionate and heavy, and the titillation of two people discovering each other in such an intimate way is palpable. It’s sweaty and sexy. But thanks to some wonderful editing, the scene takes on a whole new—and far more interesting—meaning. In a masterclass of editing, Mickey 17 cuts between Marshall’s fiery speech, and Mickey and Nasha’s far hotter lovemaking.

Marshall is a politician with delusions of grandeur who is leading the journey from Earth to Niflheim. Marshall lost his election when he ran for Congress on Earth, and this journey to Niflheim is his opportunity to achieve what he hasn’t earned—representing a community (though in reality, he’s more interested in ruling them).

He has fake, blindingly white teeth, slicked-back and greasy hair, and an orange tint to his skin. He speaks broadly and dramatically, offering little outside of absolutes. He’s greedy and wants to continue growing his immense wealth above all. Marshall is a mockery of a broad swathe of dictatorial leaders who give with one hand and take with the other, though in 2025, it seems pretty clear that Marshall is playing a stand-in for President Trump. (The whole orange skin thing doesn’t exactly make it subtle, either).

“You will spread your seed across the planet,” Marshall shouts exuberantly, promising plenty of procreation and a “sex encouragement campaign” when they get to Niflheim. Except Mickey and Nasha are way ahead of him.

Mickey 17 cuts from Marshall’s claim to Mickey in between Nasha’s legs. He kisses her, thrusting away with carnal delight. But we don’t hear the sounds of Nasha and Mickey’s sex—instead, we hear Marshall droning on about the communal sacrifice required by everyone on the ship to achieve the greater good.

The interplay renders his impassioned speech utterly pointless: It’s clear that his words hold little weight amongst the ship’s inhabitants, as they’re literally doing exactly what he said cannot be done for a whopping four years. It’s not like Mickey and Nasha followed suit and desire got the best of them weeks or months later; it’s happening at the same time Marshall is giving his speech.

What makes Marshall’s words ring even more hollow is that he seems to have no interest in following his own words—it’s one set of rules for him and another for everyone else. This is clear in the scene as Marshall gives the speech with his wife Ylfa (Toni Collette) by his side. Or rather, Ylfa is attached to him, and the two of them can’t keep their hands off of each other. They’re like relentlessly horny teenagers. If they weren’t so cartoonishly evil, you could almost appreciate their adoration for one another.

It’s all so effective because you could easily imagine Marshall and Ylfa fornicating exactly as Mickey and Nasha are in the scene. There’s a rabid, extreme horniness that fuels both of these wannabe dictators as they grope and prod each other while proclaiming that nobody on the ship can have sex. It’s hypocrisy at its finest, and the film’s perfect editing blends steamy sex with glowingly blunt political commentary for a thoroughly ridiculous, unforgettable scene.

After the speech, we see Mickey and Nasha giggling over a tablet, drawing out future sex positions for them to try. It’s a satisfying punchline and an oddly stirring call to resistance. And what’s a more wonderful way to resist than having sex?