On the calendered surface ofCompanion , you get a sports meeting - cute between a nice guy and the double-dyed girl . Josh ( Jack Quaid ) and Iris ( Sophie Thatcher ) seem like that idyllic rom - com duet , the goofy guy cable and the out - of - his - league looker who somehow ca n’t live without him . The catch?She ’s a robotand he bought her for companionship that ’ll suit hiseveryneed .
io9 caught up with filmmakerDrew Hancockto lecture about the inspiration behind hisStepford Wives - colour , “ girlfriend of tomorrow ” android romantic thriller . WhileCompanionis about a robot missy , the AI vista of Iris are frighteningly existent because people like Josh really subsist — and you do n’t have be a robot to have been made to feel like someone ’s property .
“ I think for me , my way in is just to make Iris as relatable as possible . So when I think about her as a character , I ’m not really thinking about her as a robot . I ’m thinking about , what is her emotional journeying that she ’s live on ? How is it relatable to people that are watching it ? ” Hancock shared .
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Sophie Thatcher ’s Iris looks a bit like Zooey Deschanel in her500 Days of Summerera , and the law of similarity do n’t end there : both women are the romantic interest of a schmuck who figure his insecurity on her , assuming she ’ll roll in the hay him anyways ( though she may eventually depart him , like Deschanel ’s character did inSummer ) . “ I think the matter that ’s kind of the legerdemain of this pic and Sophie ’s functioning is that this is a relationship drama at its core , ” Hancock said . “ This is not a big comment on what AI is , this is more about AI is like a proxy for us . And we ’ve all been in those relationships where maybe it was n’t the best human relationship . You do n’t realize until it ’s over that you await back and go , my gosh , why was I in this relationship with this person ? ”
It would n’t be surprising if Iris ’ robot guide was based off those eccentric of manic pixie dreaming daughter for Josh to cull but Thatcher ’s carrying into action brings a sullen and emotionally detached take on the role on purpose . It ’s almost like she has a shell built up against the wear of worked up British Labour Party . “ Iris is being literally programmed , we ’re metaphorically being program , ” Hancock tell . “ But that to me was the fun of it — the play of incorporating AI as a placeholder for someone who ’s have like imposter syndrome . Someone who feels like they ’re less than . She finds out she ’s less than because she ’s not actually a human being . ”
It ’s no wonder that not even a sentient robot could put up with it either , once they realized they ’re a robotic receptacle for the toxic expectations of a gaslighting incel eccentric .
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Quaid really digs into his fibre ; he ’s a darling doofus one moment and a menace behind everyone ’s backs the next . The actors really play well off each other between the good and the bad of their family relationship to get the very real themes to radiate through the sci - fi aspects ofCompanion . “That ’s a testament to them , it ’s just their ability as actors . Like they ’re so unspoilt , as presently as you see them together that relationship feel so subsist in , it feels like they ’ve known each other for years and class and geezerhood , ” Hancock allege . “ Jack , [ let ’s give ] credit to him to take a rail line like ‘ Smile , and move felicitous ’ and make that a horrible affair to say to someone , but really plays it off in this like sort of goofy way that you ’re like , ‘ I kind of like this guy ’ even though he ’s saying these painful things . ”
And Thatcher ’s Iris does have her bit where she draw the line of not tolerating that any longer , after being responsive to Josh in the first routine . “ There ’s something off about her performance . You know what I mean ? ” Hancock said of Thatcher ’s portrayal of Iris ’ programmed nature . “ Like something feels wrong when you ’re watching the motion-picture show , and that ’s all from Sophie , that ’s all her ability . ”
The film does portray how even robotic love story can be multidimensional in this very near succeeding reality with AI Companions already in forward-looking paradigm models . “ That was really important to me . I never want to come from a position of judgment . This could easily have just been from Josh ’s point of view . But this is a engineering science that is snuff it to exist at a sure distributor point and some people are gon na be using it for good , ” Hancock aver . “ And that ’s kind of like the point behind AI , right ? It ’s like a tool , it ’s technology . You could practice it for good , you may use it for bad . So I want to show the other side of that coin which is like , what would a healthy relationship be like ? ”
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Quaid and Thatcher in any other picture would be cutesy rom - com leads with merriment support from Harvey Guillén and Lukas Gage , but these comedic intensity from the tout ensemble do get the chance to beam .
There ’s also an constituent of tragedy we get to see in that gaze with the relationships within the film . Companionruns thegamut of a multi - genre popcorn picture . “ The whole point of this movie was because I was at a place in my career where I was n’t capture the task opportunities that I want , ” Hancock articulate . “ I love genre , I ’ve always loved musical genre . I loveThe Terminator . I love anything with robots or stuff and nonsense like serial killers or ghosts . But I was not receive those line opportunities . So I was like , okay , well , maybe you should write something that like mull the variety of movies you like . And so I mean , there ’s like 10 tones in this movie . There ’s 10 genres in this motion picture . And I just kind of just tried it all , like set in a little number ofTerminator , set a little bit of Coen brothers , putting a short bit like a heist component . So just throw it all on the rampart and see what stick . ”
Companionopens this Friday , January 31 .
need more io9 tidings ? Check out when to expect the latestMarvel , Star Wars , andStar Trekreleases , what ’s next for theDC Universe on film and TV , and everything you need to know about the succeeding ofDoctor Who .
CompanionDrew HancockJack QuaidSophie ThatcherWarner Bros.
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