In the near future, architect Otone Komoto and her husband Kensuke, who runs a construction company, are still shattered two years after the tragic death of their seven-year-old son Kakeru. Unable to move past their grief, the couple decides to welcome a humanoid robot into their home as their son. The robot, designed to look and sound exactly like Kakeru at age seven, is meant to help them cope with their loss. As they navigate this controversial choice, the family must confront difficult questions about memory, identity, and what it truly means to be human.
Title: Sheep in the Box (Japanese: 箱の中の羊 / Hako no Naka no Hitsuji; also known as Sheep in a Box, Regenerated Family)
Year: 2026
Type: Feature Film
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese
Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda (known for Shoplifters, Broker, Still Walking)
Writer: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Editor: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Producer: Kaoru Matsuzaki
Music: Ludovico Einaudi
Cinematography: Ryūto Kondō
Genre: Science Fiction, Drama, Family, AI Ethics
Stars: Haruka Ayase (Otone Komoto), Daigo Yamamoto (Kensuke Komoto), Kuwaki Rimu (Kakeru Komoto / Robot Kakeru), Nana Seino (Alice Kotaki), Kanichiro (Gen Hidaka), Hinata Hiiragi (Takuto Konno), Akihiro Kakuta (Junichi Hano), Kayo Noro (Kasumi Hano), Mari Hoshino (Mother), Ayumu Nakajima (Engineer), Kimiko Yo (Nobuyo Nishimura), Min Tanaka (Akio Yamagata)