Jenna Ortega Is Ishiguro’s Android Heroine in Taika Waititi’s Klara and the Sun

Taika Waititi’s take on Klara and the Sun gets its world premiere at the BFI London Film Festival on October 15, and Columbia Pictures opens it in theaters on October 23. Jenna Ortega stars as Klara, the solar-powered android at the heart of Kazuo Ishiguro’s 2021 novel.

It was Ishiguro’s first novel after his 2017 Nobel Prize. Waititi co-wrote the screenplay with Dahvi Waller, and Harry Potter producer David Heyman is on board through Heyday Films.

The story

In a near future split by genetic engineering, Klara is an Artificial Friend, a companion android built for children, and already a model past its prime. She is waiting in a store window when Chrissie picks her for her daughter Josie, who is seriously ill. Klara commits herself to the girl and becomes convinced that the Sun holds the power to heal her.

The cast

• Jenna Ortega as Klara;
• Amy Adams as Chrissie;
• Mia Tharia as Josie;
• Aran Murphy as Rick;
• Natasha Lyonne as the store manager;
• Rachel House as Melania.

Simon Baker shot scenes as Josie’s father, but his role did not survive the final cut.

The filmmakers

The Jojo Rabbit Oscar winner shot the film in New Zealand from January 2024, at Silverlight Studios in Wānaka and in Auckland, under the working title Tears and Rain. Mike Berlucchi is the cinematographer, Adam Gough and Tom Eagles edited, and Michael Giacchino composed the score in his fourth collaboration with Waititi. The film runs 116 minutes.

Release

After London, Klara and the Sun opens in US theaters on October 23. Reviews are still to come.