In Rashida Jones‘ new Apple TV+ series, an American woman struggles with losing her loved ones, but develops a friendship with a futuristic robot companion.
Rashida Jones is no stranger to the small screen. However, as the executive producer and star of the new Apple TV+ series, Sunny she found herself immersed in the world of advanced robotics. The show is set in Kyoto, Japan long after Jones’ character, Suzie, has moved from America and started a family.
Despite Jones’ love of the city in real life, Suzie shows a stubborn disinterest in assimilating to the culture. In fact, she never learned Japanese, even though her husband, Masa (Hidetoshi Nishijima) and son, Zen, are fluent in the language.
In conversation with Jones, she shared how she believes Suzie’s move to Japan was a coping mechanism.
“Like so many things in the world as there’s a vulnerability there that she’s not really wanting to open herself up to being hurt,” said Jones. “To meet her at a time when she’s dealing with this loss she finally does open herself up to Masa and she has a family and then she loses it…so she’s doubly defensive,” said Jones.
The 10-episode series depicts Suzie’s life after Masa and Zen disappear in a mysterious plane crash. Shortly after, Suzie is given a “home bot” named Sunny. This is a cheerful, AI-like robot that is designed to be a companion and help Suzie cope with the loss of her loved ones.
This is especially important because the series mostly focuses on Masa’s relatives. Suzie’s family, specifically those who still live in America, are sparsely mentioned, making her past ambiguous.