Bob Harris

Visiting… Tokyo, where he is filming a commercial for Suntory whiskey. The money is easy, and his hosts have put him up at the sleek Park Hyatt Hotel, but Bob can’t help but be bored out of his skull. He’s tired – of fame, of acting, and of people.

Profession… semi-retired actor. Bob had a successful career, and is famous enough that Suntory is paying him $2 million to appear in the commercial. But he’s been in the business so long that it has grown stale – Bob no longer takes any pleasure in fame or recognition, and is aware that he’s a sell-out.

Interests… alone time, whether it be on the golf course, in the swimming pool, or at a bar stool. Bob feels disconnected from himself and the world, a feeling that has only grown more pointed in the culturally-impenetrable Tokyo.

Relationship Status… married with kids. Bob loves his family, but after 25 years of marriage and a decade plus of fatherhood he’s emotionally fatigued. He’s unable to express his growing sense of disconnection from the world, and is forced to feign interest in a life that he finds exceedingly mundane. The only person who makes Bob life more bearable is his new friend Charlotte – a pretty 20-something newlywed who has been left in the Park Hyatt while her husband goes to work. Bob and Charlotte are at different stages in life, but are united in their shared sense of helplessness and stagnation.

Challenge… loneliness. Sure, there are plenty of people in Bob’s life – a litany of assistants and producers, two kids, and a wife of 25 years – but he doesn’t truly feel connected to them. His is a loneliness that persists even in a crowded bar. Time has stripped Bob of his vitality and his happiness, and he now languishes in the Park Hyatt with the grim fatalism of a soul stuck in limbo.

Personality… melancholic, with an active and dry sense of humor. He’s extremely jaded, and embraces his cynicism as a form of emotional protection. His self-loathing is indistinguishable from self-acceptance, making it difficult to tell whether Bob has accepted his place in the world or merely become resigned to it.