The Uncanny Valley: CGI'ing Dead Actors/Actresses

[Spidey Revivey]

This post contains spoilers for Star Wars: Rogue One. It's essential to the discussion so if you have not seen the movie and want to without knowing any little surprises, then please do not read the rest of this post.





There has been some discussion lately about using dead celebrities and superimposing their faces and the like onto other actors. Many would claim the practice is unethical, while others prefer doing that as it fits a particular narrative better than just hiring a different actor to play the part or scrapping the character completely. Certain shots of The Crow has Brandon Lee's face on another person, even as he died on set and Brandon didn't originally take part in the scene. Humphrey Bogart makes an appearance in Tales From The Crypt, even though he had been dead for decades. Forrest Gump was spliced into several moments with long dead presidents and musicians.

It is definitely hitting an uncanny valley. In the new Star Wars movie, Peter Cushing, who died in 1994, stars as Grand Moff Tarkin and is featured extensively throughout. The final scene hits fans maybe a little too close to home now because we get a young Carrie Fisher's face digitally recreated on actress Ingvild Deila.

Carrie Fisher not appearing in Rogue One is easily attributed to being too old to play a young Leia, and she has said as much herself. But Cushing's appearance has sparked some derision in news outlets. The practice of casting Cushing was met with quotes such as these:

"A giant breach of respect for the dead."

"A digital indignity."

It should be pointed out that Cushing's family and those who do own his estate had no problems with his likeness being used. To many, including myself, it doesn't seem like a very big deal as long as permission has been granted. I would rather see somebody like Cushing return to a role they had made famous, and with his unique look, it would have looked extremely out of place to not have Grand Moff Tarkin make some appearance before A New Hope. I prefer things having some chronological order, and it would have been very noticeable if he was absent or recast. But there is an ethical dilemma here and I can see that. For others, it is too uncanny and can remove them completely out of the moviegoing experience. Instead of following the story, they may wonder to themselves "That guy looks exactly like Cushing. Wait, that is Cushing. How the fuck?". So I understand some backlash on this. Seeing dead people come "back to life" in movies long after they've been dead is a creepy moment. So I ask you guys-

Is the practice of CGI'ing dead people into movies too much? Should it be normalized?

 

[THTRobtaylor]

It's been coming a while - to the point Robin Williams had in his will that his likeness cannot be used after his death. You could imagine Disney using him for a live action Alladin for example...

The impressive thing with Rogue One was they actually got Cushing's performance, not just his appearance spot on. It's as good as any of his living work...and imo could even be Oscar worthy. That's where it gets murky... Can he be nominated? after all Heath won posthumously but was alive to make the film.

The genie is out the bottle now and as time goes on you'll see more of it... where it's fascinating is what happens when the tech goes next level... Does an actor suddenly only get a one picture deal and CG'd the rest of the time? Would solve the "RDJ" problem of endless millions going to one talent each time they want to use the character ina smallish role.

 

[Барбоса]

We have already had CGI being used to fill in for live actors when the character is doing something the actor cannot so this is not a big leap. In a way, you could say that it is no different than using make-up to make an actor look like an historical figure.

I might have more of an issue if they were trying to shoehorn in a character for no reason but Tarkin needed to be there. Plus, it did actually look and sound like Peter Cushing's Tarkin, so it did not do him a disservice and was a character he had already agreed to play.

So long as the Cushing estate was consulted and paid (he was given a special position in the end credits), for me there is no issue.

Now, if it was using a capture of young Marlon Brando to play Krennic say, then it would be a different matter.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

The impressive thing with Rogue One was they actually got Cushing's performance, not just his appearance spot on. It's as good as any of his living work...and imo could even be Oscar worthy. That's where it gets murky... Can he be nominated? after all Heath won posthumously but was alive to make the film.

Highly unlikely. Even though it's Cushing's image, it's ultimately something that's done digitally. Back when the Two Towers came out, everyone was blown away by Andy Serkis' performance as Gollum, many were impressed to such a degree that there was a pretty large campaign movement for him to be nominated for an Oscar. However, the Academy didn't go for it because even though it was Serkis' voice and he did the motion capture stuff for Gollum, what was ultimately seen on screen when all was said & done was a computer generated image.

To me, a great performance is a great performance any way you slice it but like just about everything else in life, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is weighed down by bureaucracy. In the case of the Academy, it's the Board of Governors, which consists of 51 members representing the 17 different branches of the Academy. When it comes to the Academy Awards, the Board of Governors have some traditional and, in some ways, flat out old fashioned ideas when it comes to Academy policy; it's one of the reasons why the Academy Awards are often viewed as the most boring awards show on television.