‘Independence Day,’ ‘Training Day’ directors embrace AI, shut down claims it can replace humans
Roland Emmerich, Antoine Fuqua talk about the technology at Comic-Con last weekend
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Award-winning action directors Roland Emmerich and Antoine Fuqua aren’t afraid of artificial intelligence.
During a Collider panel at Comic-Con last weekend, both industry veterans weighed in on the technology’s impact.
"I think it’s a tool. That’s what it is. It just makes your job as a director more easy," Emmerich said, per Variety. "That’s what’s really important, because it’s not like this AI does everything for you. You still need to choose the right actor, shoot the right scenes, do the right thing. And then AI can really help you in doing that."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Emmerich is best known for directing films like "Independence Day," "The Patriot" and "The Day After Tomorrow."
Antoine Fuqua and Roland Emmerich talk about AI during a panel at Comic-Con. (Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images)
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He’s currently directing the Peacock historical drama "Those About to Die," starring Anthony Hopkins.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fuqua had similar feelings about AI, comparing its rise to that of digital filmmaking.
"… it’s not like this AI does everything for you. You still need to choose the right actor, shoot the right scenes, do the right thing."
"We’re creatures of habit. I remember when I started in videos and commercials, I shot on film," Fuqua said. "Digital was a thing we all kicked and screamed about. Turns out, it’s fantastic. It’s another paintbrush we can use to do our work. AI’s the same thing."
Emmerich and Fuqua agreed that AI is a useful tool that won't replace human work in film. (Getty Images)
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}However, he did feel there were limitations to its abilities.
"It doesn’t replace human feelings and human emotions. There’s things that can only happen in the moment with another human being that no computer can ever achieve," he said.
Fuqua is best known for films like "Training Day," starring Denzel Washington, who won a best actor Oscar for his role in the film, as well as "The Equalizer" and "Emancipation."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Next for Fuqua is the Michael Jackson biopic, "Michael," starring Jackson’s nephew, Jaafar Jackson. It’s set to premiere on April 18, 2025.
"It doesn’t replace human feelings and human emotions. There’s things that can only happen in the moment with another human being that no computer can ever achieve."
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Fellow action movie legend Jerry Bruckheimer, the producer behind "Top Gun," "Bad Boys" and "The Pirates of the Caribbean" films, to name a few, told Fox News Digital this year that he didn’t see AI completely erasing humans in filmmaking.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Anything that makes our lives easier that doesn’t take jobs away from people that we work with every day is good for everybody. It gives them a better movie experience. We can make things look more real and things like that," he said in June.
"Top Gun" producer Jerry Bruckheimer told Fox News Digital, "Anything that makes our lives easier that doesn’t take jobs away from people that we work with every day is good for everybody." (Kate Green/Getty Images for Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures UK)
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He added, "We’re certainly not going to replace actors. You’re never going to replace the key crew members that we work with. [They’re] always going to be there."