OSCAR-WINNING director Bong Joon-ho, who made awards history with his genre-bending thriller “Parasite,” is making his next feature film at Warner Bros. Robert Pattinson, who will appear as the Caped Crusader in “The Batman,” is expected to star in the science-fiction story, an adaptation of Edward Ashton’s upcoming novel “Mickey7.” According to the book’s publisher St. Martin Press, the high-concept cerebral thriller is best described as “The Martian” meets “Dark Matter.” The tale is about an “expendable” — a disposable employee on a human expedition sent to colonize the ice world Nifheim — who refuses to let his replacement clone, dubbed Mickey 8, take his place. Author Jason Pargin called the novel “a unique blend of thought-provoking science-fiction concepts, farcical relationship drama and exotic body humor.” “Edward Ashton keeps it all grounded via a protagonist who experiences the wonders of interstellar travel and alien contact while literally having the worst job in the universe,” Pargin wrote. “The result is alternately amusing, intriguing and horrifying, with each chapter seeming to engage a different part of your brain.” Plot details for the movie have not been confirmed, and it’s not clear how closely Bong plans to stick to the source material. Ashton’s book is scheduled to publish in February. (SD-Agencies) | 