How far would you go to feed your family or secure a job? Would you literally “kill” the competition for your next job? Park Chan-wook’s upcoming film explores this very dilemma.
Just like France, which has finalized its bold entry, It Was Just an Accident (2025) as its official International Feature Film submission for the 2026 Oscars, South Korea is sending acting icon Lee Byung-hun’s No Other Choice to Academy Award voters.
Plot details of No Other Choice (2025)
Directed by Park Chan-wook, the comedy thriller “No Other Choice” focuses on a man who desperately wants a new job and takes matters into his own hands if anyone gets in his way.
The paper company laid off You Man-soo (played by Squid Game’s frontman Lee Byung-hun) after he had worked 25 years there. The entire paper manufacturing industry wants to streamline its workforce.
Man-soo has no other choice but to remove every other candidate for his next job in order to provide for his family. He resolves to take this step after being discarded by a ruthless job market and humiliated by failed interviews.
Watch the trailer here:
Director’s vision for the film
Park Chan-wook clarified his aims behind making the film. He said at a press screening that,
“This is also a story of characters trapped in ethical dilemmas. They are people stuck in the question of which path is the right one. If there were a perfectly good option, the choice would be easy, but both options are bad.” [Source]
Chan-wook realizes that humans are always feared by the potential state of unemployment, as they have to provide for their families. It is a typical human nature to choose the right path and shun the bad one.
However, if both available paths are complicated, the ethical dilemma of choosing the “less bad” one remains on his mind forever. His film is a moral opportunity to ponder over these human traits that lead him to do completely unacceptable things.
Why “layoffs” and “unemployment” remain the highlighted themes of the film is because Chan-wook thinks the worry regarding incoming projects and investment always exists. Humans are always under stress, whether their salaries are held or whether their families will suffer from their layoffs.
An inability to provide for their family raises a question about their masculinity, which is an ultimate social portrayal of men’s psyche. This exploration of masculinity is shown in the film with humorous situations, with some contrasting, frightening, peculiar, sad, and chaotic situations.
Lee Byung-hun revealed some challenges that he had to face while portraying Man-soo’s extreme choices. He knew that no one would think of murdering other people merely upon being laid off. He agreed that at one point he thought the film should have been adapted into a series to make the audience believe his transformation steadily.
However, he was later convinced by the director of a cinematic setup. Byung-hun understood how a total loss for such a person could change him radically, which helped him immerse easily into the role.
Why did South Korea choose No Other Choice for the 2026 Oscars?
According to Screen Daily, the Korean Film Council decided to pick No Other Choice as South Korea’s Oscars 2026 contender. The film council’s jury also includes Parasite’s (2019) producer, Kwak Sin-ae. He explained the reason for selecting the film by saying,
“It stands out for its outstanding quality and the actors’ performances, and it has a high level of completeness, along with a globally recognised director and a distributor with Academy Award experience.” [Source]
Parasite was the first non-English language film to win the Best Picture award at the Oscars 2020, alongside three other awards for Best Director, Best International Feature, and Best Original Screenplay.
South Korea is one of the strongest proponents of showing social differences and struggles in its films, and that is the very reason Parasite portrayed the vision so elegantly. The appraisal of social class differences in contemporary Korea has a height of power that always gains high critical respect.
No Other Choice has a 100 percent Rotten Tomatoes critics’ score at the time of writing, which seems to be competing with Parasite. Neon distributed Parasite and is now distributing No Other Choice as well.
This dark comedy and social satire blends the themes of the fragility of masculine pride, human survival instincts, the modern capitalist world, and AI-encroached elements in layered form.
Based on Donald E. Westlake’s satirical horror-thriller novel, The Ax (1997), the storytelling entails breadwinner crises and family dysfunctions. The film’s strong reception and global resonance make No Other Choice an apt choice for South Korea’s hope for the Oscars 2026.
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When is No Other Choice (2025) releasing?
After receiving rave reviews at Venice Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), Neon will release the film in selected theatres this year’s Christmas. No Other Choice is also expected to roll out in the US in January 2026.
Genre: Dark comedy, satire, crime, drama, thriller
Cast: Lee Byung-hun, Son Ye-jin, Park Hee-soon, Lee Sung-Min, Yeom Hye-Ran
Director: Park Chan-wook
Writers: Park Chan-wook, Lee Kyoung-mi, Jahye Lee, Don McKellar
Producers: Park Chan-wook, Jisun Back, Michele Ray-Gavras, Alexandre Gavras
Release date: December 25, 2025
Movie runtime: 2 hours 19 minutes
Do you think No Other Choice has what it takes to repeat Parasite‘s Oscar success? Let us know your thoughts below.
Passionate Entertainment Writer | Trusted Pop Culture Voice
Madiha Ali is an experienced entertainment writer with over five years of expertise in covering movies, TV shows, celebrity news, and pop culture. Her bylines appear on trusted platforms like High on Films, Ary News, The Express Tribune, Tea and Banter, Show Snob, CelebFeedz, Snapfeedz, Daily Planet Media, The Irish Insider, and Movie Insiderz.
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When she’s not writing, she’s fully immersed in the world of entertainment—watching new releases, revisiting classics, exploring behind-the-scenes content, or reading books that fuel her creativity. Her passion for storytelling drives her work and helps her stay connected to what matters most in the industry.
Madiha believes great stories start conversations, challenge perspectives, and stay with us long after the credits roll. Through her writing, she continues to share those stories with clarity, depth, and heart.
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