Following Brendan Fraser’s comeback with his Oscar-nominated performance in Darren Arronofksy’s The Whale, there was no shortage of excitement and speculation surrounding which project the actor would take on next. It turned out to be Rental Family, the story of an American actor named Phillip (Fraser) living in Japan who gets a job at an agency playing stand-in roles for strangers. However, as Phillip takes on clients, he begins to actually form genuine bonds with them, fueling a complicated but heartwarming story.
MovieWeb had the chance to sit down with Hikari, the writer/director of the film, to discuss Rental Family and its deeper themes. Specifically, the director was asked if the ending of the movie was meant to signify that even relationships that start off as “fake” can turn into something genuine. For Hikari, it’s the way Fraser portrays Phillip and the way the character embraces the culture that’s initially foreign to him, with Hikari saying:
“It can even temporarily be absolutely meaningful. Philip is how he connects with other characters. He’s basically never married. He marries a woman. He never had a child. He has a child, and he also plays a father role. That’s how he invests his life. What he did in these steps again was not stop. He kept going. I want to learn. I may be a Gaijin, but I want to learn.”
Hikari Wants Brendan Fraser’s Character in ‘Rental Family’ to be the Audience’s Viewpoint
In the film, Phillip begins his work at the agency reluctantly, but slowly becomes invested in the lives he’s briefly a part of. The end result for the character, despite some emotional setbacks as the illusion of his acting fades, is genuine connections and friendships. The emotional throughline of the film is Fraser’s phenomenal acting, as his character decides to follow his instincts and help people who were once clients find closure. Hikari hopes that those who view Rental Family will see themselves in Fraser’s character and his willingness to make connections:
“That is his willingness to learn. He’s willing to take a step. He says he’s willing to do whatever the clients want. It really led him to have this whole family, and then also woke up a lot of people as he went too—for example, Takehiro Hira’s character, Shinji Tada. I really hope our audience will see themselves in Philip, get in his shoes, walk as if they’re Philip, and then discover what they find.”
With an 87% Certified Fresh rating on the review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes, Rental Family looks like another success for Fraser following The Whale. What makes it even more interesting is how this character is the stark opposite of the man he plays in The Whale — a person who, rather than secluding himself, is open to creating and developing relationships.
- Release Date
-
November 21, 2025
- Runtime
-
103 minutes
- Director
-
Hikari
- Writers
-
Stephen Blahut
- Producers
-
Eddie Vaisman, Julia Lebedev