I keep seeing these quick clips of AI video generation and yes, they look impressive. Tom Cruise fighting Brad Pitt-
Other than a field day for a bunch of IP lawyers, what exactly do we have here? We have a generated fight with zero dialogue, plot points, storyline, or really anything that makes up an entertaining story other than the punches, which in and of themselves make no sense beyond the public’s desire to see these two fight. This is not a movie. This will not end Hollywood. It will be damaging to the previous generation of green screen programmers, but that is it. That’s the end of the story.
What is really killing Hollywood?
You may have noticed by now that everything is one of the following- a sequel, a remake, a reboot, or an episode within one cinematic universe or another. That is because Hollywood has lost the will to fund anything outside of established money making pathways. If there is not a previous success already in the bank, Hollywood has no interest in a story.
If one wants to make a western, it now must exist within the Star Wars Universe.
credit: Lucas Films If one wants to make a mythological movie, they have to do it in the Marvel Universe.
credit: Disney
That lack of courage has guaranteed that you will never see anything other than rehashed characters and stories, over and over again, for the foreseeable future.
This is why I quit going to the movies.
There is simply no way to get an original piece of entertainment out of a combination of overly used characters and previously released products. It does not happen. Duplicate + duplicate = duplicate. Nothing new to see here.
Eventually, the system will eat itself as its audience disappears.
Good News
There is a great future in independent production, but the money is not there yet. It will be. So, if you are an independent producer*, get to work. The payoff will be there when you are finished and until then, seek out people who are willing to put in the effort for a future reward. They are out there. You just have to find them.
*If you need ideas on how to pull it off, contact me. There are ways to produce nowadays. You just have to get creative.