# Rental Family
**Rental Family** (レンタル・ファミリー) is a 2025 comedy-drama film directed by Hikari, who co-wrote the screenplay with Stephen Blahut, starring [Brendan Fraser](https://www.edgepedia.org/brendan-fraser) as Phillip Vanderploeg, a struggling American actor in Tokyo who takes a job with a Japanese "rental family" agency, playing stand-in roles for strangers[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rental_family). It is inspired by real companion-rental services that operate in Japan[2](https://time.com/7334572/rental-family-real-story-japan/).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Director and writers | Hikari (director, co-writer, producer) with co-writer Stephen Blahut[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rental_family) |
| Lead cast | Brendan Fraser as Phillip Vanderploeg, with Takehiro Hira, Mari Yamamoto, Akira Emoto, and Shannon Mahina Gorman[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rental_family) • [3](https://fest.afi.com/2025/special-screenings-2025/rental-family/) |
| Studio and producers | Searchlight Pictures; producers Hikari, Julia Lebedev, Eddie Vaisman, and Shin Yamaguchi[4](https://www.whattowatch.com/watching-guides/rental-family-release-date-cast-plot-and-everything-we-know-about-the-brendan-fraser-movie) |
| Release | Premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival; US theatrical release November 21, 2025[5](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/rental-family-review-brendan-fraser-hikari/) • [1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rental_family) |
| Box office | $10 million domestic and $26.8 million worldwide[6](https://movie.guru/rental-family-movie-review) |
| Reception | 87% on Rotten Tomatoes (204 reviews), CinemaScore A[6](https://movie.guru/rental-family-movie-review) |
| Streaming | Began streaming on Hulu on February 18, 2026[7](https://www.disneyplus.com/explore/articles/rental-family-movie) |
## Spoilers
### Premise
Set in modern-day Tokyo, the film follows Phillip Vanderploeg, a down-on-his-luck American actor who has lived in Japan for years without steady work. He joins a "rental family" agency whose employees are hired to play stand-in roles, such as relatives, friends, or colleagues, in the lives of real clients[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rental_family) • [8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14142060/plotsummary/). As Phillip immerses himself in clients' worlds, he forms genuine bonds that blur the line between performance and reality, and he confronts the moral complexities of the work[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rental_family).
Among his assignments, Phillip is hired by Hitomi, a single mother who wants her daughter Mia (Shannon Mahina Gorman) to have a better chance of admission to a prestigious private school that disfavors single-parent families, and he accompanies Kikuo Hasegawa (Akira Emoto), an aging actor losing his memory, on a final journey to his hometown[8](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14142060/plotsummary/) • [9](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/rental-family-emotional-experience-one-scene-wish-left-cutting-room-floor-brendan-fraser).
## Production
Hikari, a Japanese filmmaker based in Los Angeles, wrote, directed, and produced the film. It is her second feature as director after *37 Seconds*, which premiered at the [Berlin International Film Festival](https://www.edgepedia.org/berlin-international-film-festival); her television credits include episodes of *Tokyo Vice* and *Beef*[3](https://fest.afi.com/2025/special-screenings-2025/rental-family/) • [4](https://www.whattowatch.com/watching-guides/rental-family-release-date-cast-plot-and-everything-we-know-about-the-brendan-fraser-movie). [Searchlight Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/searchlight-pictures) announced the production with Fraser in the lead, with filming in Japan beginning in spring 2024[10](https://www.searchlightpictures.jp/news/20231124_01). The production companies were Knockonwood and Sight Unseen[4](https://www.whattowatch.com/watching-guides/rental-family-release-date-cast-plot-and-everything-we-know-about-the-brendan-fraser-movie).
To prepare, Hikari spent time interviewing employees at companies offering similar services in Tokyo[11](https://www.fif-85.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Rental-Family_Notes_FINAL.pdf?x61882=). Shannon Mahina Gorman, who plays Mia, had never appeared in a film before this role[12](https://5657b7b3-8e47-4c55-ae4c-00d9c807d55c.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ae0be75a-6e4a-4123-ac90-f1c443d0df7f/storage/tmp/binary6a324117c51a55.59023170?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=ASIA33DHLJ7ESRACQLV4%2F20260617%2Fus-west-2%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20260617T063919Z&X-Amz-Expires=1200&X-Amz-Security-Token=IQoJb3JpZ2luX2VjEL%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2FwEaCXVzLXdlc3QtMiJGMEQCIBh8Q4Z8VyyVHMpPf9mit0tpeuaDKkp3M6BPh3u58rWzAiA%2FAG7T2EB5%2FX7GGhKQx6k3YB8knRvGfhoVSKIOzTjLeCq9BAiI%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F8BEAEaDDgxNDExMzA1MDU2OSIMOF%2FYDg6yU7IaGEcmKpEEapW3WVvGtKNaatVGu42J7%2BXKA7%2Fe5a5IsETzGCaI%2BidAJqIbOWJlLxMoc4B9BudSikOWoifEZgBEL9BSKVOSt3SfWOXBpK%2Bwmi81TjC0l0Gg6DizokwzKIhP4EBpxZBz0dEiYit4di4aN%2BNH%2BvSa7hOLdF1LashwfpPqQgn3Et04vdxzKoAbc8YA43%2FiDcc1tVGpI%2Fq1BxRtmwJd7t1xFVB7gcGUnLfPpCGBkMZv90IicR7r0NRoYs3PMwKmGpjU351BEsihzlfxS0a%2FzOBmuBwEbXFYomYDKQsdDT0da27mWjDTr7sNGzPteoSpm8ZhpHouMvUUtaKoa%2BF8LT7vQOG%2BrWzbIKSdmAK9SKzZ9trPuBs61du48hF%2FYfRxpuBoY9n2H5sHNougAFYCBi7F5LEHiOOhk%2Fp%2BIyItvU4mzxYJVgEy2KmepKeE%2FpY5PfFtLGp%2FPPh1keKvqfsofvHiaEbpgz25jF9gUzL8Hu9O4YOPaLnLISQ6%2FkiflJq10q%2BVEDN3%2BTp115SS2gPdNCngwLRXAsXwyGVdDkThdOaw%2B%2Fa2beQBAx9n0Hf1eD2CdQF0Eau%2BPkfEZIB5VoEDmpYtzO1TwlF18WDWrOrKEe0kS9jY%2Fcx18WkwlophColxzd12T0nuyIvDssh3daaL3o3THaPkLN6JmQj7TYfyQ6WT67bNdO9kxZe0mCpB1PDkP918nTCc%2FcjRBjqjAXYNEOIh8mznXsY7hEaxWRgZZ7fpi8PNPONwQQGfstS%2FhOOCIbzL62MuMeOpB0jzZr8j9PwgduhGBEcnx9QCqgavyc0Tpihoq8BlQLxJ8NHjrmSPb3PEz0L8EL6oaf1S0zwfTSHhl60PdhtrxqLkKy6QMF1TThvlD1NdaMefvETaE9mLzhCVpmuHj2WN7e1lRZEpekOta3xWzdNXi0ffBaD2TMM%3D&X-Amz-Signature=5a65ae60922f244ff2feea598927be61ee5b822a68b1bc288106c403791b8a43&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&response-content-disposition=attachment%3B+filename%3D%22Rental-Family_Production-Notes_FINAL.pdf%22).
## The real rental family industry
The film's premise reflects a real industry. Rental companion services are a considerable business in Japan; the first companion service, the Japan Efficiency Corporation, launched in 1991[2](https://time.com/7334572/rental-family-real-story-japan/). Companies rent out actors to fill roles such as family members, friends, or coworkers at weddings, funerals, and other social occasions. According to Time, such services offer a way for people to share their *honne*, their true feelings, discreetly while maintaining social harmony[2](https://time.com/7334572/rental-family-real-story-japan/).
[Mari Yamamoto](https://www.edgepedia.org/mari-yamamoto) and [Takehiro Hira](https://www.edgepedia.org/takehiro-hira) visited a Tokyo company providing a rent-a-person service during their research; the firm, an all-women handyman company, does not label itself a rental family service[13](https://www.whowhatwear.com/fashion/celebrity/mari-yamamoto-the-rental-family).
## Release and reception
*Rental Family* premiered at the [Toronto International Film Festival](https://www.edgepedia.org/toronto-international-film-festival) and opened in US theaters nationwide on November 21, 2025, distributed by Searchlight Pictures[5](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/rental-family-review-brendan-fraser-hikari/) • [1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rental_family). It was Fraser's first leading role since his Oscar-winning performance in *The Whale* (2022)[4](https://www.whattowatch.com/watching-guides/rental-family-release-date-cast-plot-and-everything-we-know-about-the-brendan-fraser-movie).
The film earned an 87% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes from 204 reviews and an A CinemaScore from opening-night audiences[6](https://movie.guru/rental-family-movie-review). The critics consensus on the site calls it "a sweet-natured dramedy about faking human connection until you make it" that gives Fraser "an ideal showcase for his sensitive star power"[1](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rental_family). Reviews were not uniformly warm: Richard Roeper of RogerEbert.com praised the "elegant direction" and "tenderhearted" ensemble performances[14](https://keswickfilm.org/downloads/notes/rental-family_prognotes.pdf), while Slant Magazine called the film "a mawkish journey of self-discovery"[5](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/rental-family-review-brendan-fraser-hikari/).
At the box office the film grossed $10 million in the United States and Canada and $26.8 million worldwide[6](https://movie.guru/rental-family-movie-review). It reached digital platforms on January 13, 2026, and began streaming on Hulu on February 18, 2026[15](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/rental-family/CzlVgjkJeOqcVOhbHLZ3h2/where-to-watch/) • [7](https://www.disneyplus.com/explore/articles/rental-family-movie). A Blu-ray release followed on February 17–18, 2026[15](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/rental-family/CzlVgjkJeOqcVOhbHLZ3h2/where-to-watch/) • [16](https://www.laughingplace.com/entertainment/rental-family-digital-release-event/).
## References
1. [Rental Family, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/rental_family)
2. [The Real Inspiration Behind Rental Family and the Actors Who Play Roles in People's Lives, Time](https://time.com/7334572/rental-family-real-story-japan/)
3. [RENTAL FAMILY, AFI FEST 2025](https://fest.afi.com/2025/special-screenings-2025/rental-family/)
4. [Rental Family: release date, cast, plot and everything we know, WhatToWatch](https://www.whattowatch.com/watching-guides/rental-family-release-date-cast-plot-and-everything-we-know-about-the-brendan-fraser-movie)
5. [Rental Family review, Slant Magazine](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/rental-family-review-brendan-fraser-hikari/)
6. [Rental Family (2025), movie.guru](https://movie.guru/rental-family-movie-review)
7. [Rental Family: Plot, Cast & How to Watch, Disney+ Explore](https://www.disneyplus.com/explore/articles/rental-family-movie)
8. [Rental Family (2025), Plot, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14142060/plotsummary/)
9. [Rental Family Was An Incredibly Emotional Experience, CinemaBlend](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/rental-family-emotional-experience-one-scene-wish-left-cutting-room-floor-brendan-fraser)
10. [HIKARI監督作『Rental Family（原題）』製作決定, Searchlight Pictures Japan](https://www.searchlightpictures.jp/news/20231124_01)
11. [Rental Family Production Notes, FIF-85](https://www.fif-85.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Rental-Family_Notes_FINAL.pdf?x61882=)
12. [Rental Family Production Notes (final PDF)](https://5657b7b3-8e47-4c55-ae4c-00d9c807d55c.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/ae0be75a-6e4a-4123-ac90-f1c443d0df7f/storage/tmp/binary6a324117c51a55.59023170?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=ASIA33DHLJ7ESRACQLV4%2F20260617%2Fus-west-2%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20260617T063919Z&X-Amz-Expires=1200&X-Amz-Security-Token=IQoJb3JpZ2luX2VjEL%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2FwEaCXVzLXdlc3QtMiJGMEQCIBh8Q4Z8VyyVHMpPf9mit0tpeuaDKkp3M6BPh3u58rWzAiA%2FAG7T2EB5%2FX7GGhKQx6k3YB8knRvGfhoVSKIOzTjLeCq9BAiI%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F%2F8BEAEaDDgxNDExMzA1MDU2OSIMOF%2FYDg6yU7IaGEcmKpEEapW3WVvGtKNaatVGu42J7%2BXKA7%2Fe5a5IsETzGCaI%2BidAJqIbOWJlLxMoc4B9BudSikOWoifEZgBEL9BSKVOSt3SfWOXBpK%2Bwmi81TjC0l0Gg6DizokwzKIhP4EBpxZBz0dEiYit4di4aN%2BNH%2BvSa7hOLdF1LashwfpPqQgn3Et04vdxzKoAbc8YA43%2FiDcc1tVGpI%2Fq1BxRtmwJd7t1xFVB7gcGUnLfPpCGBkMZv90IicR7r0NRoYs3PMwKmGpjU351BEsihzlfxS0a%2FzOBmuBwEbXFYomYDKQsdDT0da27mWjDTr7sNGzPteoSpm8ZhpHouMvUUtaKoa%2BF8LT7vQOG%2BrWzbIKSdmAK9SKzZ9trPuBs61du48hF%2FYfRxpuBoY9n2H5sHNougAFYCBi7F5LEHiOOhk%2Fp%2BIyItvU4mzxYJVgEy2KmepKeE%2FpY5PfFtLGp%2FPPh1keKvqfsofvHiaEbpgz25jF9gUzL8Hu9O4YOPaLnLISQ6%2FkiflJq10q%2BVEDN3%2BTp115SS2gPdNCngwLRXAsXwyGVdDkThdOaw%2B%2Fa2beQBAx9n0Hf1eD2CdQF0Eau%2BPkfEZIB5VoEDmpYtzO1TwlF18WDWrOrKEe0kS9jY%2Fcx18WkwlophColxzd12T0nuyIvDssh3daaL3o3THaPkLN6JmQj7TYfyQ6WT67bNdO9kxZe0mCpB1PDkP918nTCc%2FcjRBjqjAXYNEOIh8mznXsY7hEaxWRgZZ7fpi8PNPONwQQGfstS%2FhOOCIbzL62MuMeOpB0jzZr8j9PwgduhGBEcnx9QCqgavyc0Tpihoq8BlQLxJ8NHjrmSPb3PEz0L8EL6oaf1S0zwfTSHhl60PdhtrxqLkKy6QMF1TThvlD1NdaMefvETaE9mLzhCVpmuHj2WN7e1lRZEpekOta3xWzdNXi0ffBaD2TMM%3D&X-Amz-Signature=5a65ae60922f244ff2feea598927be61ee5b822a68b1bc288106c403791b8a43&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&response-content-disposition=attachment%3B+filename%3D%22Rental-Family_Production-Notes_FINAL.pdf%22)
13. [In Conversation With Hollywood Rising Star Mari Yamamoto, WhoWhatWear](https://www.whowhatwear.com/fashion/celebrity/mari-yamamoto-the-rental-family)
14. [Rental Family Film Notes, Keswick Film Club](https://keswickfilm.org/downloads/notes/rental-family_prognotes.pdf)
15. [Rental Family, Where to Watch, Moviefone](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/rental-family/CzlVgjkJeOqcVOhbHLZ3h2/where-to-watch/)
16. [Searchlight Pictures Celebrates the Home Media Release of Rental Family, Laughing Place](https://www.laughingplace.com/entertainment/rental-family-digital-release-event/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Comedy and romantic films (individual works) › Comedies of 2025 › Titles M to Z*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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