The Creator: your new robot revolution scifi movie (trailer).
It’s been confirmed: We’re living in an era of robot anxiety, and the film industry is having a field day. “The Creator,” an upcoming science fiction action thriller directed by Gareth Edwards, is the latest to hop on the A.I. bandwagon. Timely? Absolutely. Original? Well, let’s see.
John David Washington, freshly emerged from a cloud of Tenet’s time-inverting dust, leads the cast as Joshua, an ex-special forces agent who seems to have more on his plate than a Sunday brunch buffet. This poor guy is not only grieving the loss of his wife, but also finds himself amid a future war between the human race and the forces of artificial intelligence. As if that wasn’t enough, he’s been tasked to hunt down and kill the Creator, an elusive architect of advanced AI.
Gemma Chan, Ken Watanabe, Sturgill Simpson, Madeleine Yuna Voyles, and Allison Janney have also been roped in to navigate this dystopian quagmire, where rogue A.I. is as common as a Tesla on a California highway. As we wait with bated breath for the film’s release on September 29, 2023, it’s clear that this is Hollywood’s latest attempt to explore the age-old conundrum: “What happens when the things we create turn against us?” Spoiler alert: It doesn’t end well.
Edwards, proving his prowess behind the camera, takes on triple duty as director, writer, and producer. It seems like he was drawn to the allure of artificial intelligence faster than a self-driving car to an unoccupied lane. And let’s not forget the obligatory nod to our VFX gods at Industrial Light & Magic, who’ve been charged with giving life to our future mechanical overlords.
But the ride to “The Creator” wasn’t without its bumps. “True Love,” as the project was formerly known, underwent multiple casting changes. McBride and Wong had to depart due to scheduling conflicts, replaced by Simpson and Watanabe, who, incidentally, has previously worked with Edwards on Godzilla (2014). Because, if you’re making a film about the end of humanity, why not bring in a guy familiar with giant city-destroying monsters?
The first look at the film, shown at CinemaCon, drew comparisons with “Blade Runner,” which is kind of like saying your high school garage band reminds people of the Beatles. It’s a high bar set for the upcoming movie but, let’s face it, in the age of ever-advancing A.I., the movie world is just trying to keep pace. Let’s hope “The Creator” is more of a HAL 9000 and less of a Clippy the Microsoft Office Assistant.
