Nicolas Cage weighs in on AI in acting | “Robots cannot reflect the human condition for us”

Nicolas Cage
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Nicolas Cage has been addressing AI and where it sits in the world of acting. It would be fair to say that Cage is not a fan.


An actor who’s been known to draw inspiration from village shamans in his work, it’s perhaps unsurprising that Nicolas Cage doesn’t like the idea of AI being used in his profession.

Cage has previously expressed concerns about his body being ‘stolen’ by AI to create performances that aren’t his, and it’s an idea that he returned to at the Saturn Awards this week when he picked up the prize for Best Actor for the wonderful A24 drama, Dream Scenario.

Nicolas Cage is adamant that that AI shouldn’t be used in acting. In an interview with Variety, he said:

“Robots cannot reflect the human condition for us. That is a dead end if an actor lets one AI robot manipulate his or her performance even a little bit, an inch will eventually become a mile and all integrity, purity and truth of art will be replaced by financial interests only. We can’t let that happen.”

He continues: “The job of all art in my view, film performance included, is to hold a mirror to the external and internal stories of the human condition through the very human thoughtful and emotional process of recreation. A robot can’t do that. If we let robots do that, it will lack all heart and eventually lose edge and turn to mush. There will be no human response to life as we know it. It will be life as robots tell us to know it. I say, protect yourselves from AI interfering with your authentic and honest expressions.”

It’s the kind of stirring speech that will hopefully prompt other creatives to refuse AI intrusion in their work. It also probably won’t help Adrien Brody’s chances in the race for a Best Actor Oscar, given that parts of his performance were lightly AI-assisted, sparking a controversy which may have hurt The Brutalist's Oscar chances.

The Brutalist controversy aside, it’s possible that the technology is being used to reshape actors’ performances in ways we aren’t aware. It’s therefore up to performers to take a stand and protect themselves, their profession and audiences from this worrying trend.

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