Sorry, Val Kilmer fans, but the late actor’s Oscar ship has officially sailed. on friday, reuters It was reported that AI-generated acting and writing would not be eligible for Academy Awards. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ new rules will take effect at next year’s presentation in March 2027.
The Academy’s updated rules state that filmmakers can use AI tools, but “synthetic” artists cannot win any awards. The same is the case for AI-written scripts, which must be “human-written”. The Academy may request more information from submissions to confirm that they were created by humans.
One “performance” that won’t need much explanation is Kilmer’s completely AI-generated appearance in the upcoming indie film, as deep as the grave. The actor was initially cast in the film but had to withdraw from the film due to medical concerns. (He died in April 2025.) Although Kilmer never set foot on set, he will appear in “a significant portion” of the film, according to Diversity.
The film’s writer and director Coert Voorhees said, “His family kept saying how important they thought this movie was and that Val really wanted to be a part of it.” “He really thought it was [an] Important story on which he wanted his name. It was that support that gave me the confidence to say, okay let’s do this. Despite the fact that some people might call it controversial, that’s what Val wanted.”
Perhaps even more disturbing than the AI-generated likeness of a dead actor is the work of the ByteDance tool, which has also raised some concerns in the industry. A two-sentence prompt, using SeeDance 2.0, was enough to produce a highly believable 15-second clip of Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt sitting on a rooftop. (Come on, Pitt would totally kick her ass.)
The cinematic clip went viral, Hollywood experienced existential panic, and even Washington protested. latest? ByteDance has reportedly halted the rollout of the tool while the entertainment industry prepares for a future where typing a few words is all it takes to create a feature film.
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