John Cho stars in a film about a universal fear: Protecting family as smart home devices get too smart 

Veteran actor John Cho says his new AI horror thriller, “Afraid,” parallels concerns around technology that he’s had in own life.

Veteran actor John Cho says his new AI thriller, “Afraid,” about a smart home device that becomes too involved in his family, parallels concerns around technology that he’s had in his own life. 

Cho’s film opens Friday and focuses on a digital assistant device that spirals out of control after gathering increasing information on the family it’s meant to help. He said the way the film questions the use of artificial intelligence and overreliance on technology reflects some of the issues with the internet that he’s observed as a parent. 

“My son, for instance, plays online games. And I’m not 100% sure who’s online with him all the time,’” he said. “It could theoretically be someone who’s not his age, who’s pretending to be his age. … Is this better or worse or equal to real life?” 

In the film, Cho plays patriarch Curtis, whose family is selected to test out the digital assistant, called “AIA.” After the unit is installed throughout their home, complete with cameras and sensors, the family meets AIA with enthusiasm. It seemingly makes life far more convenient, from ordering lunches to putting the kids to bed. But as AIA progressively collects more information about the family, like their individual behaviors and their darkest secrets, it becomes dangerously protective over their lives.

From left, John Cho and Kal Penn in "Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle."New Line Cinema / Courtesy Everett Collection Cho was apprehensive about taking on horror roles in his early days, he said, largely due to growing up in a religious household where it felt “wrong” to watch the genre. But he said he’s been increasingly interested in the way in which horror can help him work through his own personal questions and doubts, with the latest being the limits of technology. He also talked about how films without overt Asian-specific identity issues are an evolved and important part of representation. Cho said that not only have roles gotten more substantive for actors of color, but nowadays, he’s no longer the token Asian actor on a set. Several of his co-stars in the latest project, in fact, are of Asian descent, including Havana Rose Liu and Lukita Maxwell.  

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/john-cho-afraid-ai-smarthome-film-rcna168469

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