WELL, THIS IS THE 21st CENTURY, YOU KNOW: John Nolte: Good News! Artificial Intelligence Can Resurrect Classic Movie Stars.

People under 40 have no idea how good life was when movie stars walked the earth. Because people mattered, the movies used to be about real human experiences we all shared. These movies brought us together through laughter, thrills, and tears. Those movies weren’t hollow amusement park rides and jump scares. We used to care about the characters and get lost in their emotional journey.

Thanks to stars, movies almost always had something interesting and important to say about who we are, where we came from, and where we might be going. We were taught to aspire, never to give up, and that we’re imperfect people who can always be better.

What if AI could bring back John Wayne, Charles Bronson, Barbara Stanwyck, Better Davis, Clark Gable, Burt Reynolds, Cary Grant, Carole Lombard, Ingrid Bergman, and the rest all in their prime? What’s the downside?

Oh, I realize some terrible producer could pull a Kathleen Kennedy. What I mean is this… In the same way, Kennedy resurrected Indiana Jones and Luke Skywalker just so she could dump all over them; some hideous producer could make Humphrey Bogart gay or Jean Arthur a transsexual. But I go back to what I said last week about AI taking over screenwriting…

Can things get any worse?

I’ll take a new Veronica Lake/Alan Ladd movie over whatever the insufferable Rachel Zegler and Seth Rogen are serving. At the very least, Lake and Ladd have actual charisma and appeal. Most every so-called “star” today sucks. Zero charisma. Zero appeal. Very little talent… Given the choice, I’ll watch Ava Gardner read the phone book over Jennifer Lawrence’s next project.

The resurrection of past stars via AI was something that Arthur C. Clarke predicted in his 1986 book,  Arthur C. Clarke’s July 20, 2019: Life in the 21st Century. In addition to virtual movie stars filling the big screen, this technology will likely open the floodgates to dead artists promoting the newest products. Remember when Fred Astaire was dancing on the ceiling — and vacuuming it as well? Or John Wayne shilling for Coors Beer?

Eventually, AI may allow home viewers to create their own movies and mashups, such as Han Solo once again shooting Greedo  first, Darth Vader preventing the rebels from destroying the Death Star, and Adam West starring in a Christopher Nolan Batman movie in place of Christian Bale. Or allowing the computer operator himself to don the cape, cloak and utility belt.