Kazuo Ishiguro’s bestselling novel, Klara and the Sun, is officially getting a movie adaptation, and it is coming sooner than you think!
I have been cautiously hopeful about this adaptation for years, mostly because pairing Kazuo Ishiguro with Taika Waititi felt like such an unusual choice. After seeing the response to the movie’s trailer, I think the gamble might actually pay off.
Sony Pictures revealed the release date for Taika Waititi’s adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s book Klara and the Sun as October 23, 2026, at CinemaCon. The first trailer for the film was also shown to convention attendees. But it is yet to be revealed to the general public.
This has been a very long road to get here. And it looks like the wait is finally almost over.
What Is Klara and the Sun Movie About?
If you haven’t read this one yet, Kazuo Ishiguro built something quietly devastating here.
A robot named Klara exists to ease the loneliness of the humans she lives with. She is what’s called an “Artificial Friend,” and the entire story unfolds through her perspective—observant, devoted, and almost painfully earnest.
Klara is a robot girl created to prevent teenagers from becoming lonely, and the story follows her efforts to save a family of humans she lives with from heartbreak.
The trailer gives us our first real glimpse into Klara’s voice. As she puts it in the footage:
“How will I know if my person and I are a good match?”
That single line captures so much of what makes Ishiguro’s writing so effective: quiet questions with enormous emotional weight hiding underneath.
Casting & Story Details:
The cast assembled for this is genuinely excellent.
The film stars Jenna Ortega, Amy Adams, Mia Tharia, Natasha Lyonne, and Steve Buscemi. The trailer footage shows Mia Tharia as Josie, a sickly girl who chooses to bring home Klara.
That choice doesn’t sit easily with everyone in Josie’s life. Josie’s mom, played by Amy Adams, asks skeptically, “This one? She looks tired.”
It’s a small moment, but it tells you everything about the tone this film is reaching for—tender, a little uneasy, and deeply human despite Klara not being human at all.
TriStar Pictures president Nicole Brown introduced the footage to CinemaCon attendees with a description that nails the emotional core of the story:
“This is a hopeful story about friendship and connection at a time when technology makes us feel so alone.”
Why Taika Waititi for Director?
This is the part of the announcement that has divided readers and critics alike, and understandably so.
Taika Waititi directed Klara and the Sun from a screenplay he co-wrote with Dahvi Waller, based on Ishiguro’s novel. It follows his most recent directorial effort, 2023’s Next Goal Wins, a modest sports comedy that struggled financially at the box office.
Waititi is best known for blending comedy with real emotional stakes, which makes him an unconventional choice for Ishiguro’s restrained, melancholic prose. But it’s not entirely unprecedented.
He premiered Jojo Rabbit at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2019 before its theatrical release the following month, a dark comedy-drama that scored him his first Oscar win for Best Adapted Screenplay.
If anyone can find the emotional gravity beneath an offbeat premise, it might be him. Whether that instinct translates well to Ishiguro’s quieter, more interior style remains to be seen.
The Long Road to the Screen:
This adaptation has taken an unusually long time to arrive, and the journey is worth knowing about.
In July 2020, Sony’s 3000 Pictures acquired the screen rights to Ishiguro’s novel, with David Heyman attached to produce for his company Heyday Films. In March 2021, Dahvi Waller was set to write the script, with Ishiguro serving as an executive producer.
In May 2023, Taika Waititi entered negotiations to direct and produce the film. In January 2024, Waititi was confirmed to direct, and Jenna Ortega was in talks to star in the lead role.
The following month, Amy Adams, Mia Tharia, Aran Murphy, Natasha Lyonne, and Simon Baker joined the cast, with Ortega confirmed to star as Klara.
Principal photography began in January 2024 under the working title “Tears and Rain,” with scenes shot at Silverlight Studios in Wānaka, New Zealand, before the production moved to Auckland in early April.
Speculation suggested the film might surface in 2024 or 2025, but neither of those windows materialized. Now, with a confirmed October 2026 release, fans finally have a date to count down to.
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