Klara and the Sun Ending, Explained
Directed by Taika Waititi, Klara and the Sun is a story about grief, technology, and what it truly means to be human. Played by Jenna Ortega, the titular character is an Artificial Friend — an android that has been manufactured to be the ‘friend’ of a lonely human.
In this novel adaptation, Klara is a little different to other AFs. She’s an older model, a B1 rather than B3, and she is known for being peculiar: standing with one leg up and chatting away to the sun, seeing it as some kind of deity.
Her life changes after lonely teenager Josie chooses her to be her companion. As she integrates into Josie’s life, despite the disapproval of Josie’s mother and housekeeper, Klara learns about friendship, family, and what it truly means to be a person.
Here, we breakdown the intricacies of Klara and the Sun, especially the ending of the film.
What Is Wrong With Josie?
Josie had a medical procedure known as being “lifted.” This is supposed to genetically enhance her, giving her genius intellect along with numerous other talents like the ability to paint and play piano.
However, while most kids get “lifted”, Josie’s procedure went wrong. It leaves her terminally ill. For context, Josie’s sister died a few years earlier. Unable to stand the grief of losing yet another child, Josie’s mother (Amy Adams), commissions a mysterious scientist known as ‘Mr. Capaldi’ to make an AF version of Josie by capturing her ‘essence’ through extensive portraiture.
Ultimately, they want Klara to go inside the vessel and play the role of ‘Josie’ after the real Josie dies, because Klara has the ability to mimic her. Obviously, everyone is pretty freaked out about this. It is also revealed that Josie’s mum previously tried to make an AF of Josie’s deceased sister — but this AF failed to capture the child’s essence. Mr. Capaldi is adamant that his technology has improved, and that there’s nothing about humanity that can’t be replicated, which, obviously, is a pretty scary way of looking at the world.
Does Klara Die?
As mentioned, Klara has some pretty wacky beliefs about the sun. This all stems from the fact that AFs are solar-powered, with Klara describing the sun as “nourishing” her. Despite praying to the sun, which she believes ‘lives’ in a nearby barn, Josie’s condition doesn’t improve, and Klara concludes that this is because a ‘Cootings machine’ (a harvesting machine that deposits a lot of exhaust fumes) is blocking the sun from “nourishing” and healing Josie.
To stop this from happening, Klara slashes her neck and drips PEC-3, a highly flammable substance that, for all intents and purposes, is robot blood, into the machine, which is inside the barn. She then lights a match and sets the barn on fire.
While she leaves the barn, she is severely injured and near death. Josie’s love interest Rick, who has engineering skills, manages to save her, and she, Josie, and Josie’s mother reunite.
How Does The Movie End?
Klara then describes how the sun made Josie better. She and Josie end up drifting apart as Josie leaves home, and for a while, she continues living with Josie’s mum, who doesn't replace her daughter with a robot. Josie’s mother then asks Klara, who is slowly declining, how she wants to live out the rest of her days. She chooses to go to an AF retirement ‘yard,’ where she reunites with her AF friends from the store she was originally in.
It is then revealed that Klara has been narrating the story for them. One of the other AFs tell her that it’s likely Josie actually died, and that Klara’s version of events aren’t strictly accurate, but Klara’s ex-store manager insists that she can believe whatever she wants to.
The movie then ends on a sentimental note as Klara sees Josie join her at the yard. But it’s also ambiguous. Is Josie actually dead? Is Klara seeing a ghost? That much is left unclear, but the movie ends on a wholesome note as Klara says that, despite what Capaldi claimed, humanity cannot be replicated.
