20 Things You Didn't Know About Parasite

During Parasite’s promotion and time in the awards circuit, Bong Joon-ho spoke about his cinematic influences. While the likes of Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino each received shout-outs, one director that greatly influenced the film is Alfred Hitchcock.

The legendary director’s filmmaking sensibilities influenced Parasite’s narrative as well as the house’s design to a large degree (this can be seen in the latter’s genre classic Psycho). Bong stated that the Bates House in particular was key in inspiring the Kim house’s precise visual design.

Furthermore, the design-centric inspiration, visual tropes such as stairs and voyeurism (all Hitchcock hallmarks) are prominently featured in Parasite. A portrait of the legendary filmmaker is also featured (fleetingly) in the movie on a book about him.