Emily Blunt Rejects AI for 'Disclosure Day' Performance
Emily Blunt, the Oscar-nominated star of Oppenheimer, has revealed she refused to use artificial intelligence to enhance her performance in the upcoming summer blockbuster Disclosure Day. Directed by Steven Spielberg, the film follows a weather presenter who begins speaking an alien language during a live broadcast. Blunt, known for her outspoken criticism of AI actress Tilly Norwood, told YouTube show Hot Ones that she was 'terrified' of relying on generative technology to modify the sounds of her stuttering non-human language. Instead, the 43-year-old British actress performed the entire sequence herself, working alongside the film's human sound designer.
'It’s a four-minute oner that we shot that leads up to that moment where she’s gradually sort of disintegrating. There’s various ways you could do it. You could go the AI route, which I’m a bit terrified of,' Blunt explained. She decided to create the sounds herself, saying, 'I said maybe I could come in and we’ll just do a range of weird sounds. And it’s what we did. I did sort of the clicking sounds, humming sounds, consonant sounds, breathing, strange sounds.'
The production team placed one microphone near her mouth and another near her throat to capture the sounds, which the sound designer later transformed into the final eerie audio. This approach not only makes for a more impressive and unnerving moment for audiences but also underscores the importance of human artistry in filmmaking. Critics argue that using AI shortcuts would diminish the value of performances, especially when A-list actors command large salaries.
This controversy echoes the backlash over AI use in The Brutalist, where editor Dávid Jancsó employed Respeecher AI to tweak the Hungarian accents of Adrien Brody and Felicity Jones. However, both actors had initially put in significant effort to master the difficult language, a distinction that many consider important.
Spielberg's Stance on AI
Director Steven Spielberg, despite his 2001 film A.I. Artificial Intelligence, has expressed wariness about using AI in creative roles. Last year, he confirmed he had not used AI on any of his films and was open only to non-creative applications like budgeting. 'I don’t want to use it in front of the camera right now. Not quite yet,' he said. In a recent podcast with Michelle Obama, Spielberg added, 'I don’t believe there is any substitute for the soul,' and stated that AI should not have 'the final word on anything creative.' He emphasized that AI could assist with tasks like location scouting but should not dictate narrative or creative decisions.
Disclosure Day is set for release on June 12. The film's commitment to human-driven performance has been praised as a refreshing counterpoint to the growing use of AI in Hollywood.
