The silver screen has long been fascinated with the concept of artificial intelligence, depicting its potential to revolutionize our lives and challenge humanity's existence. From Fritz Lang's Metropolis to 2001: A Space Odyssey, films have explored the darker side of AI, warning us about its dangers and consequences. However, in recent years, Hollywood has seen a significant shift in its approach to AI storytelling.
The novelty of exploring AI themes has worn off, and what was once considered innovative has become tired and formulaic. Screenwriters and studios have returned to the subject, but instead of pushing the boundaries, they're relying on familiar tropes and clichés. The result is a genre that's lost its edge and struggled to captivate audiences.
Consider the latest AI-themed films, such as M3GAN and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning. While they may have had some initial success, they ultimately fell flat due to a lack of originality and depth. The Entity, a rogue AI introduced in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, was underwhelming and failed to justify its presence in the film.
Even more recent releases, like Mercy, starring Chris Pratt as an LAPD detective aided by a judge bot, have been met with criticism for their lack of substance and ethics. The film's depiction of AI surveillance and justice system has been panned as shallow and naive, relying on cheap relativism rather than genuine exploration of the topic.
The latest example of Hollywood's struggles with AI storytelling is the web series On This Day…1776, produced by acclaimed director Darren Aronofsky's creative studio Primordial Soup. The project uses Google DeepMind to generate YouTube videos about the American colonies' declaration of independence. While it has drawn attention and scorn, its attempts to valorize the country's founders have been criticized for their aesthetic ties to authoritarian culture.
The backlash against AI-generated content is already evident on social media. Viewers have reacted poorly to digitally altered versions of existing entertainment, such as a de-aging commercial for Xfinity that made Jurassic Park stars look like "melting wax figures." The irony of appropriating a film that was technologically astounding for its time and adding a layer of deepfakery has not gone unnoticed.
The entertainment world can't keep up with Silicon Valley startups or the public perception of smart appliances and virtual assistants. As studios continue to push AI as both a dramatic theme and transformative tool, they're risking an AI backlash that could hurt their bottom line. The question remains: will Hollywood have answers when we're ready to be saved from the daily onslaught of bots?
The novelty of exploring AI themes has worn off, and what was once considered innovative has become tired and formulaic. Screenwriters and studios have returned to the subject, but instead of pushing the boundaries, they're relying on familiar tropes and clichés. The result is a genre that's lost its edge and struggled to captivate audiences.
Consider the latest AI-themed films, such as M3GAN and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning. While they may have had some initial success, they ultimately fell flat due to a lack of originality and depth. The Entity, a rogue AI introduced in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, was underwhelming and failed to justify its presence in the film.
Even more recent releases, like Mercy, starring Chris Pratt as an LAPD detective aided by a judge bot, have been met with criticism for their lack of substance and ethics. The film's depiction of AI surveillance and justice system has been panned as shallow and naive, relying on cheap relativism rather than genuine exploration of the topic.
The latest example of Hollywood's struggles with AI storytelling is the web series On This Day…1776, produced by acclaimed director Darren Aronofsky's creative studio Primordial Soup. The project uses Google DeepMind to generate YouTube videos about the American colonies' declaration of independence. While it has drawn attention and scorn, its attempts to valorize the country's founders have been criticized for their aesthetic ties to authoritarian culture.
The backlash against AI-generated content is already evident on social media. Viewers have reacted poorly to digitally altered versions of existing entertainment, such as a de-aging commercial for Xfinity that made Jurassic Park stars look like "melting wax figures." The irony of appropriating a film that was technologically astounding for its time and adding a layer of deepfakery has not gone unnoticed.
The entertainment world can't keep up with Silicon Valley startups or the public perception of smart appliances and virtual assistants. As studios continue to push AI as both a dramatic theme and transformative tool, they're risking an AI backlash that could hurt their bottom line. The question remains: will Hollywood have answers when we're ready to be saved from the daily onslaught of bots?
like what happened to all those cool AI movies and tv shows we used to watch? remember them? but now it's all just formulaic stuff that feels like we've seen it before 
. i mean, m3gan was cute but mission impossible dead reckoning felt like a rehash of old plot points 
. and mercy was so rushed and didn't really say anything new about AI ethics 
, when really we need more thoughtful exploration of its implications 
.
. I mean, yeah it's cool to explore the concept, but can't they come up with something new for once? The whole "rogue AI" trope is getting old fast 
. And don't even get me started on this On This Day…1776 thing... I mean what's next, a YouTube series that generates its own scripts using DeepMind? 
It sounds like some kinda sci-fi movie script gone wrong 
.
... who doesn't love watching a Jurassic Park commercial with de-aged dinosaurs look like they're melting? 
.
I feel like the whole AI thing has become so overdone in movies and shows. It's like they just phoned it in 
. I mean, look at On This Day…1776... it's just perpetuating this shallow and problematic narrative 
.
. We're already seeing that with the backlash on social media... 
The Entity in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning was such a weak attempt at world-building, it felt like they just phoned it in.
And what's up with all the Google DeepMind nonsense? It feels like studios are just trying to prove they're "cool" or whatever.
And the backlash on social media is pretty telling – people are already getting tired of this AI-generated content, and they're right to be.
i mean dont get me wrong theres some pretty cool tech stuff but its getting stale like every other movie is just rehashed version of previous one and we all know what happens when you rely on same old tropes - audiences start to lose interest and studios need to step up their game if they wanna keep the magic alive 
and btw what's wrong w/ de-aging tech? 