HUMANS ONLY
Hollywood finally did what Hollywood always does when new tech shows up: panic first, regulate second.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has officially drawn a line in the sand, announcing that AI-generated actors and AI-written screenplays will not be eligible for Oscar consideration. The new rules require performances to be “demonstrably performed by humans with their consent,” while screenplays must be “human-authored.”
And honestly? That’s probably the right move.
Not because AI should be banned outright — it shouldn’t — but because filmmaking is still fundamentally a human art form. There will never be a fully virtual actor walking up on stage to accept an Academy Award. At least, not if audiences still care about authenticity, struggle, charisma, and the beautifully messy thing called humanity.
What’s interesting is that the Golden Globe Awards took a far more nuanced approach. Their new rules don’t automatically disqualify films using AI. Instead, they focus on whether the “human creative direction, artistic judgment, and authorship remain primary throughout the production process.”
That’s the sweet spot.
AI should be treated like CGI, Photoshop, Pro Tools, or motion capture — a tool, not the auteur. If AI helps clean up dialogue, assist with dubbing, generate temp visuals, or streamline post-production workflows, fine. We’ve already seen this hybrid approach in films like The Brutalist, where AI-assisted voice enhancement sparked controversy despite the performances remaining deeply human.
The bigger issue now is transparency.