The Digester

Variety reports director Coerte Voorhees will use generative AI and family-provided materials to depict Val Kilmer in As Deep as the Grave, raising questions about technology, consent, and audience acceptance.

Director Coerte Voorhees told Variety he plans to use generative AI to create photorealistic footage of Val Kilmer for the film As Deep as the Grave even though Kilmer did not shoot any scenes.
Voorhees says he has cooperation from Kilmer's family, including daughter Mercedes and supportive son Jack, and access to family photos and footage from Kilmer's later years.
Sonantic previously helped produce a facsimile of Kilmer's voice after a medical procedure, but Variety does not specify which video-generating technology will be used for the film.
Using family-supplied images with current text-to-video tools could create convincing deepfake-style footage on a modest budget, though it is unclear if that will satisfy mainstream movie audiences.
Voorhees claims Kilmer had been cast and wanted his name on the project, but independent confirmation of Kilmer's consent and the ethical implications of digitally recreating a person remain unresolved.

Director Plans to Use AI to Put Val Kilmer in New Film with Family's Cooperation

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