The Russo Brothers have revealed how artificial intelligence was used in the creation of their new movie The Electric State. The Avengers: Doomsday filmmaker’s latest effort is a science fiction adventure movie set after a war between humanity and robots.
Millie Bobby Brown leads the cast of writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely’s adaptation of author Simon Stålenhag’s 2018 graphic novel about a young girl searching for her brother in a vast wasteland caused by the war. As Michelle ventures out into this strange new world, she joins forces with former soldier Keats (Chris Pratt) and a sentient robot in hopes of finding her sibling.
The Russo Brothers Used A.I. For Vocal Modulation in The Electric State
The Russo Brothers Address the ‘Leaked’ Avengers: Doomsday Concept Art
Has the most secretive franchise experienced leaks?
Speaking to The Times, the Russos addressed the use of A.I. in their film since many in Hollywood have warned against its potential harm to actors and filmmakers. The co-directors confirmed that they’d used the technology to alter voices, like “any ten-year-old could do after watching a TikTok video.”
“There’s a lot of finger-pointing and hyperbole because people are afraid,” Joe Russo insisted. “They don’t understand. But ultimately you’ll see AI used more significantly. Also, AI is in its generative state now, where it has, as we call them, hallucinations. You can’t do mission-critical work with something that hallucinates. That is a reason self-driving cars haven’t taken over, or why AI surgery is not taking place worldwide. But in its generative state, AI is best suited towards creativity.”
“There’s a lot of finger-pointing and hyperbole because people are afraid.”
The Russos also addressed whether the casting of Brown and Pratt in The Electric State‘s leading roles was a case of looking primarily for global starpower.
The Electric State is Based on Simon Stålenhag’s Retro-Futurist Graphic Novel
The Graphic Novel Received Huge Acclaim When it Was Released in 2018
‘That Was Unbelievable to Us’: The Russo Brothers Detail How Community Led to Their MCU Legacy
The Russo Brothers have helmed some of the highest-grossing films of all time, but it all started with Community.
- Simon Stålenhag’s The Electric State was ranked as one of NPR’s Books of the Year for 2018, and received rave reviews from literary industry publications Booklist and Publishers Weekly.
- Anthony and Joe Russo acquired the film rights for The Electric State in 2017, before the graphic novel was even completed.
- The Netflix film version reunites the Russos with Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely.
“It is about the globalization of storytelling,” Anthony Russo insisted. “Joe and I used to work in comedy but then we transitioned into global film-making, with action-adventures traveling well around the world.”
Anthony went on: “But comedy is culturally specific, so there was a decline in comedy. And the same goes for stars and if they are valuable any more. That question is a result of the diversification of the global audience, and the fact that there’s not this monoculture any longer.”
The Russos previously confirmed that they’d learned “many things” from the visual effects in The Electric State that will inform their work on the next two Avengers movies.
The Electric State Features a Star-Studded Live-Action and Voice Cast
|
The Electric State Cast |
|
|---|---|
|
Actor |
Role |
|
Millie Bobby Brown |
Michelle Greene |
|
Chris Pratt |
John D. Keats |
|
Stanley Tucci |
Ethan Skate |
|
Jason Alexander |
Ted Finister |
|
Brian Cox |
Popfly |
|
Rob Gronkowski |
Blitz |
“I think our refinement of motion capture [will be helpful],” Joe said. “There’s new methods that are available now to help capture it on set. The tricky thing, when you’re working with visual effects, is, if it’s a green screen, we have an award-winning camera operator we work with, named Geoff Haley. He has nothing to frame to, other than a face. But, when you’re layering in on sets, rough comps into the eyepiece for him, now he can actually do his job. These are some of the advancements that are really enhancing the quality and look of the effects in movies.”
The Electric State has thus far been savaged by critics, with the film scoring only 14% approval on Rotten Tomatoes. However, audiences have been far more receptive to the science fiction movie, as it has reached a much more impressive 76% audience favorability score.
The Electric State – which also features Woody Harrelson, Ke Huy Quan and Anthony Mackie – is now streaming on Netflix.
Source: The Times
The Electric State
- Release Date
-
March 14, 2025
- Director
-
Anthony Russo, Joe Russo
