Kevin O’Leary made a case for AI in Hollywood after claiming the upcoming Josh Safdie-directed film “Marty Supreme,” which he stars in, spent “millions of dollars” on extras.
The “Shark Tank” star broached the topic during an appearance on the “World of Travel” podcast last week, where he suggested that the utilization of AI might actually be better for the filmmaking industry, given its more cost friendly.
“Almost every scene had as many as 150 extras. Now, those people have to stay awake for 18 hours, be completely dressed in the background. [They’re] not necessarily in the movie, but they’re necessary to be there moving around. And yet, it costs millions of dollars to do that,” O’Leary shared. “Why couldn’t you simply put AI agents in their place? Because they’re not the main actors. They’re only in the story visually and save millions of dollars, so more movies could be made. The same director, instead of spending $90 million or whatever he spent, could’ve spent $35 million and made two movies.”
As O’Leary went on, he discussed the debut of Tilly Norwood — though, he incorrectly referred to her as Tilly Norwell throughout the interview. O’Leary appeared to be in favor of the AI actress, despite her launch prompting a strong reaction from SAG-AFTRA.
“She’s 100% AI. She doesn’t exist. But she’s a great actress,” the businessman noted. “She can come in any age you want. She doesn’t need to eat, so she works 24 hours a day. The union is going out of their mind.”
Specifically, SAG-AFTRA declared Norwood was not welcome in the union, denouncing the AI creation as “not an actor” in a statement.
“It doesn’t solve any ‘problem,’” the union shared in September. “It creates the problem of using stolen performances to put actors out of work, jeopardizing performer livelihoods and devaluing human artistry.”
O’Leary further advised Hollywood to embrace AI, as “you can’t stop the advancement of technology.” In fact, O’Leary made it clear he’s “spending a lot of time investing” in this industry.
Watch O’Leary’s full appearance on “World of Travel” above.
O’Leary stars opposite Timothée Chalamet and Gwyneth Paltrow in “Marty Supreme,” which has already been hailed in first reviews as Chalamet’s “best performance yet.”
The sports dramedy hits theaters on Christmas Day.
