Nicolas Cage has been urging young actors to stand against employers who want to replace them with AI-generated versions of them on screen. During an appearance at the 25th Newport Beach Film Festival on Sunday, Cage made his impassioned speech and spoke directly to some of the young actors at the event. One of Nicolas Cage’s most recent appearances was as his long-lost iteration of Superman in The Flash, but that was partly achieved through the actor being digitally replicated, meaning he knows a fair amount about the subject.
Taking to the stage, Cage championed the process of filmmaking as a “handmade” and “from-scratch process.” Sharing his thoughts on the recently prevalent subject of how AI has been infiltrating Hollywood in recent years, Cage said:
“Film performance, to me, is very much a handmade, organic, from-scratch process. It’s from the heart, it’s from the imagination, it’s from thoughts and detail and thinking and honing and preparing. There is a new technology in town. It’s a technology that I didn’t have to contend with for 42 years until recently. But these 10 young actors, this generation, most certainly will be, and they are calling it EBDR. This technology wants to take your instrument. We are the instruments as film actors. We are not hiding behind guitars and drums.”
EBDR stands for Employment-based digital replica. The term became particularly well known during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strikes, and it is one two types of digital replica that the union deal with studios allows under their new rules. The use of EBDR means that an actor may not need to be on set for as long as they would for a normal performance, but they are paid for “EBDR days” in cases where they have to work less – essentially making sure that actors do not lose out on pay for the studio being able to manipulate their image.
Nicolas Cage Wants Everyone to Be Cautious About AI Use
Having previously been less than thrilled with how Warner Bros. were able to change his appearance and performance in The Flash, Cage clearly wants to ensure that the next generation of actors coming through the ranks are fully aware of the new challenges they will be facing. He continued:
“The studios want this so that they can change your face after you’ve already shot it — they can change your face, they can change your voice, they can change your line deliveries, they can change your body language, they can change your performance. I’m asking you, if you’re approached by a studio to sign a contract, permitting them to use EBDR on your performance, I want you to consider what I am calling MVMFMBMI: my voice, my face, my body, my imagination — my performance, in response. Protect your instrument.”
Related
Nicolas Cage’s 10 Greatest Villain Characters
We take a look at the greatest villain characters played by the ever-unpredictable Nicolas Cage.
While it is clear that technology has played a huge role in transforming cinema in the last several decades, there are now many people worried that the constant quest for cost-cutting could result in studios using artificial intelligence to replicate actors instead of employing them as part of a production. It does seem that there have been plenty of barriers put in place to prevent this happening just yet, but as Cage made clear, that does not mean it is completely future-proof.