Sunny's Rashida Jones & Hidetoshi Nishijima On Tackling AI Questions And Driving The Mystery Forward

Summary Sunny is a mystery drama set in Kyoto, Japan, following Suzie, an American woman grieving her family's death and navigating a complicated relationship with her late husband's AI robot, Sunny.

Rashida Jones showcases her acting range in Sunny, exploring themes of grief, AI, and complex relationships, while Hidetoshi Nishijima takes on his first English-speaking role as Suzie's late husband, Masa.

The show's blend of Japanese culture and modern technology, along with its complex characters and unanswered philosophical questions, offers a unique and challenging experience for viewers.

Sunny is set in Kyoto, Japan and follows Suzie, an American woman who has lost her family. Her husband's (played by Japanese actor Hideo Nijishima) company gives her a domestic robot meant to help her, but it opens a can of worms as Suzie realizes she didn't know her husband as well as she thought. As Suzei digs deeper into this mystery, desperate to learn who her husband was and who killed their family, her own life is in danger with questions of who she can trust haunting her, especially with Sunny.

Rashida Jones brings a dark edge to her comedy in Sunny, along with pathos and building tension not only with the character of Sunny, but the mystery surrounding her life. Sunny is based on Colin O’Sullivan's The Dark Manual and created by Katie Robbins with Jones also serving as an executive producer. With a comedic edge, Sunny is able to tackle difficult concepts, including Artificial Intelligence, and grief.

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Screen Rant interviewed Rashida Jones and Hidetoshi Nishijima about their new series Sunny. Nishijima explained why Sunny drew him to his first English-speaking role, tackling AI, and shared insight into his character. Jones explained why being the driving force in a mystery is challenging and the complicated relationship between her character, Suzie, and the robot, Sunny.

Rashida & Hidetoshi Reveal What Drew Them To Sunny

Image via Apple TV+

Jones is most well known for her comedic skills with hit shows like Parks and Recreation under her belt. While her talent for humor is utilized in Sunny, she is also able to show off her other acting chops as the character is actively investigating a larger mystery. Jones explained why that can be a tiring type of acting and why she was excited to show off this new depth.

Rashida Jones: I'm older, so I've just experienced more life and I think I wanted to be able to bring that to my work. This part was great because it was not like me in a lot of ways. Suzie is misanthropic and reactive and not a rule follower and made some choices, some bad choices in her life and some good choices in her life. But ultimately she's facing this unimaginable loss and mystery. I had never had the opportunity to kind of be the propulsive force of a mystery, which is a very challenging, I have found out I'm in awe of people who can do this well. It's a hard way to act because you have to keep the tension alive every single scene. You can never drop that tension, even if you're being funny, darkly funny, whatever. You have to have everybody with you the entire time, plus the grief elements. So that felt like a challenge I was maybe ready for in my life. It was difficult, it was definitely difficult, but I like that. I also love the kind of larger themes that this show comes up against, and I don't think there's any easy answers. And I like that too. It's a very complex show and it does a lot of things and it asks a lot of questions, and it doesn't necessarily provide a lot of answers philosophically, but I think mystery wise, it is very satisfying. It will be very satisfying for people.

Hidetoshi, you are absolutely incredible as an actor. I love your films. You're a superstar in Japan, but this is your first Western project and your first English-speaking role. What was it about Sunny that drew you to the project, and can you talk about the brilliant yet demanding designer that you play, Masa, who's at the center of our mystery here?

Hidetoshi Nishijima: First of all, when I read the script, I thought this was a show that people would have never seen before, and it talks about the current issue of AI and the evolution of technology. Through the story, there may be a path that could lead to the solution of the issues that we have with this advancement of technology. It shows both the old Japanese culture and modern society's cutting-edge technology and blends them both. You're not able to grasp everything because it's melded together; it's a mixed, complicated culture. But I was very interested in how Western eyes would perceive that blend, and that was the reason why I was drawn to Sunny. It was a wonderful experience to be a part of the show.

Rashida Sheds Light On The Complicated Dynamic Between Suzie & Sunny

Image via Apple TV+

Jones was actually acting against another actor, Joanna Soura, in her scenes with Sunny. Jones broke down the complicated dynamic between Sunny and Suzie, especially given how Suzie unexpectedly grows to care for the robot as a friend.

Rashida Jones: I love this relationship because it is hard won. I don't think, you don't expect Suzie to cave to the charms of Sonny when they first meet. I do think that persistence and loyalty and also this deep knowledge of her family that Sunny has, that nobody else has. They share this thing in common, this super intimate thing, and nobody else has it. So she ends up sort of relying on Sunny for that. But I think having Joanna animate this character and being able to kind of in practical terms, act with Joanna through Sunny, because we did that in present time was really helpful because it made Sunny feel human because there was this literal humanity behind her. I think we've all had friendships like this, maybe not with robots, where you're like, That person came in a little hot, we're good. And then they wear you down a little bit. Also they're there for you in times you don't expect them to be there for you when you're really, really reaching your bottom. There's something to that when somebody can see you in your absolute worse, and Sunny does. Sunny just sticks around for better, for worse, she's relentless. Even when Suzie's trying to get rid of her, throw her away, she just keeps coming back. And there is something to be said about that kind of friendship. Although who knows if Sunny's ultimately a good guy, you have to watch and see.

Hidetoshi, I love the chemistry between you and Rashida. I think you guys are absolutely amazing. Can you talk about working with her onscreen as Suzie and offscreen as collaborators on Sunny?

Hidetoshi Nishijima: It was truly incredible. When I was first given the script, I went, "Okay, my character is a sweet, wonderful father and husband that exists in the memory of Rashida's character." And I said, "Sure, let's do this." But each time I was given the next script, I was like, "This is Masa? Wait, this is not the Masa I thought he was. What!?" So, I actually experienced what viewers did during the show. That was the exact process that I went through to discover who he was. I spoke to [creator Katie Robbins and director Lucy Tcherniak] as we proceeded with production, saying, "I don't think I'm like him!" But maybe they saw a sense of violence within me, or some of these other elements that I don't even recognize in me, and put that in the character. And I am grateful that they did that.

About Sunny

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The life of an American woman living in Kyoto, Japan, is upended when her husband and son disappear in a mysterious plane crash. As consolation, she's given Sunny, one of a new class of domestic robots made by her husband's electronics company.

Check back soon for our interview with Katie Robbins & Lucy Tcherniak.

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Sunny premieres on Apple TV+ on July 10.

Source: Screen Rant Plus