{"id":48860,"date":"2025-09-07T09:04:09","date_gmt":"2025-09-07T09:04:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/48860\/"},"modified":"2025-09-07T09:04:09","modified_gmt":"2025-09-07T09:04:09","slug":"brendan-fraser-hikari-talk-rental-family-and-found-families","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/48860\/","title":{"rendered":"Brendan Fraser & Hikari Talk ‘Rental Family’ and Found Families"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tBrendan Fraser<\/a> returns to the Toronto International Film Festival with \u201cRental Family<\/a>,\u201d a tender new drama co-written and directed by Japanese filmmaker Hikari that explores unconventional bonds and the meaning of belonging.<\/p>\n

\n\tFraser, who last appeared at TIFF with Darren Aronofsky\u2019s \u201cThe Whale\u201d (2022) \u2014 the role that won him an Academy Award \u2014 said the project immediately struck him as unlike anything else in his career.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt was so far removed from anything I had seen,\u201d Fraser says. \u201cThe story is an unusual way to fulfill the needs of people who are bereft of family. And it felt like a film without a villain per se \u2014 apart from apathy. That speaks to us at this time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe film follows Fraser\u2019s character, Philip Vanderplug, an outsider adrift in Tokyo who becomes entwined in Japan\u2019s little-known \u201crental family\u201d industry, where people hire stand-ins to play relatives or companions.<\/p>\n

\n\tHikari, who has long been fascinated by stories of chosen families, said she was drawn to the phenomenon because of its poignancy in an era of disconnection.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThis business has existed in Japan since the 1980s, but people didn\u2019t really know about it,\u201d Hikari explains. \u201cFamily is everything for me, but I also wanted to show the beauty of found family and community. Even though people feel lonely in modern culture, this kind of service brings people together in a very awkward but fascinating way. I wanted to share that story with the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe film grapples with the idea that connection doesn\u2019t require blood. Fraser\u2019s Philip begins forming bonds with a young girl and an older man, who come to represent the family he has always lacked.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cBrendan\u2019s character didn\u2019t have a father figure,\u201d Hikari says. \u201cSo everyone who comes into his life fills in that missing role. The older gentleman becomes his father, the little girl becomes his daughter, and everyone else surrounds him as buddies. That\u2019s his family.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFor Fraser, the story mirrored feelings of isolation and the universal yearning for belonging. \u201cAt times in life, we\u2019ve all felt like we want to be part of something and have our noses pressed against the glass, trying to get in,\u201d he shares. \u201cI just needed to be there and let the environment speak for itself. It\u2019s a love letter to Tokyo, addressed to loneliness.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFraser spent four months in Japan making the film, learning enough Japanese to hold his own on set. Hikari gave him a \u201cB-plus\u201d for his effort.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI\u2019m an excellent mimic,\u201d Fraser jokes. \u201cBy the end, I could comprehend conversations at least. And I realized that language becomes immaterial when you have a need to communicate. We\u2019re going to find a way, one way or another.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWhile the Hollywood industry has faced criticism for a smaller number of films directed by women this year, Hikari expressed pride in being one of the voices represented.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cFilmmaking is very difficult. It takes hundreds of people,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019m happy that female directors \u2014 directors who happen to be in women\u2019s bodies \u2014 are still making movies. I\u2019m proud to be here among so many amazing filmmakers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFollowing his Oscar win, Fraser acknowledges that choosing projects has become both more challenging and more exciting.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cWhatever gets made now is because it\u2019s good material, because audiences can skip to the next thing in the palm of their hand,\u201d Fraser shares. \u201cIt means you really have to up your game, choose more carefully, and be better.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tNext on the docket, Fraser will portray President Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Focus Features film \u201cPressure,\u201d a drama centered on the decision-making behind the D-Day invasion. He stars alongside Andrew Scott.<\/p>\n

\n\tUltimately, Hikari hopes \u201cRental Family\u201d leaves viewers with reassurance and resilience.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cJust know that everything is going to be okay,\u201d she says. \u201cIf you get stuck, the answers are usually within yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFraser adding: \u201cThe villain is apathy. Bring tissues.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Brendan Fraser returns to the Toronto International Film Festival with \u201cRental Family,\u201d a tender new drama co-written and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":48861,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[263],"tags":[35968,18,117,19,17,327,35970,13245],"class_list":{"0":"post-48860","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-movies","8":"tag-brendan-fraser","9":"tag-eire","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-ie","12":"tag-ireland","13":"tag-movies","14":"tag-rental-family","15":"tag-toronto-film-festival"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48860","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48860"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48860\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48861"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48860"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48860"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48860"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}