James Cameron Embraces AI in Filmmaking: A Shift from Caution to Practical Application

Director James Cameron Is Open to Using AI to Reduce Filmmaking Costs

"The goal was to understand the space, to understand what's on the minds of the developers," Cameron tells Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth in an episode of his Boz To The Future podcast. "What's their development cycle? How many resources do you have to throw at it to create a new model that does a purpose-built thing? My goal was to try to integrate [AI] into a VFX [visual effects] workflow." Cameron argues that if filmmakers want to make more computer graphics-heavy films, such as Dune, they have to figure out ways to cut costs in half -- without laying off staff. Generative AI can double filmmakers "speed to completion on a given shot, so your cadence is faster and your throughput cycle is faster, and artists get to move on and do other cool things and then other cool things." When asked about using existing material to train AI models, Cameron said regulators and lawyers should worry about output versus input. (In contrast to many of his Hollywood colleagues.) "A lot of the hesitation in Hollywood and entertainment in general are issues of the source material for the training data...I think people are looking at it all wrong," Cameron said. "You can't control my input, you can't tell me what to view and what to see and where to go. My input is whatever I choose it to be, and whatever has accumulated throughout my life. My output, every script I write, should be judged on whether it's too close, too plagiaristic, whatever." While Cameron supports the use of generative AI in filmmaking, his next movie Avatar: Fire and Ash will reportedly include a title card that says no gen AI was used in creating the film, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

James Cameron Hopes Future Filmmakers Will Use AI to Save Jobs, Not Cut Them

The Avatar and Terminator creator thinks it has a positive use when it comes to managing VFX costs, but not at the expense of creatives' livelihoods. For James Cameron, saving the movie business might come down to using AI. Considering he directed cautionary tales The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day, that's a leap of faith that has us look at the future with trepidation. But don't worry; the conversation he had about it on Boz to the Future podcast (via Variety) dives into how he hopes it can be accomplished without cutting jobs drastically. “In the old days, I would have founded a company to figure it out. I’ve learned maybe that’s not the best way to do it. So I thought, all right, I’ll join the board of a good, competitive company that’s got a good track record,†Cameron explained about joining the board of directors at Stability AI. “The goal was to understand the space, to understand what’s on the minds of the developers. What are they targeting? What’s their development cycle? How much resources you have to throw at it to create a new model that does a purpose-built thing, and my goal was to try to integrate it into a VFX workflow.†“And it’s not just hypothetical,†he explained referencing how it would impact his work on the Avatar franchise and other hugely ambitious cinema. “If we want to continue to see the kinds of movies that I’ve always loved and that I like to make and that I will go to seeâ€"Dune, Dune: Part Two, or one of my films or big effects-heavy, CG-heavy filmsâ€"we’ve got to figure out how to cut the cost of that in half," he said. "Now that’s not about laying off half the staff and at the effects company. That’s about doubling their speed to completion on a given shot, so your cadence is faster and your throughput cycle is faster, and artists get to move on and do other cool things and then other cool things, right? That’s my sort of vision for that." Where he does feel AI is a threat is in replacing storytelling as an art form. “I just don’t personally believe that a disembodied mind that’s just regurgitating what other embodied minds have saidâ€"about the life that they’ve had, about love, about lying, about fear, about mortalityâ€"and just put it all together into a word salad and then regurgitate itâ€|I don’t believe that’s ever going to have something that’s going to move an audience," he said. "You have to be human to write that. I don’t know anyone that’s even thinking about having AI write a screenplay.†However, pop culture fans have seen AI being used to fuel content such as fake movie trailers that mislead audiences, and viral AI images that rip off the animation masters at Studio Ghibli. That aspect of the technology makes Cameron “a little bit queasy." Filmmakers, he said, should be influenced directly in their vision, not their hardware. "I aspire to be in the style of Ridley Scott, in the style of Stanley Kubrick. That’s my text prompt that runs in my head as a filmmaker. In the style of George Miller: wide lens, low, hauling ass, coming up into a tight close-up," he said. "Yeah, I want to do that. I know my influences. Everybody knows their influences."

James Cameron says AI can help VFX but not replace screenwriters

Whereas, Adrien Brody's Hungarian pronunciations were also enhanced using AI in The Brutalist, which ended up winning him an Oscar. There's no doubt Hollywood is embracing AI, even as a heated debate about the technology continues to grow. Among those who once warned against AI but are now finding a middle ground is legendary filmmaker James Cameron. James Cameron was once firmly on the side of caution when it came to artificial intelligence. Back in 2023, he warned that AI posed a serious risk to humanity, even pointing to The Terminator, his own 1984 dystopian vision of machines rebelling against humans, as a kind of prophecy. Fast forward to 2025, and the Oscar-winning director is taking a more nuanced view. Appearing recently on the Boz to the Future podcast, Cameron explained his new stance. In September 2024, he joined the board of directors at Stability AI, the company behind Stable Diffusion. His goal, he said, was not to profit but to gain insight. "The goal was to understand the space, to understand what's on the minds of the developers," Cameron explained.

Avatar Director James Cameron Reverses Stance on AI in Filmmaking | AIM Media House

'To continue watching the kinds of movies that I like to make, we've got to figure out how to cut the cost of that in half' Award-winning filmmaker James Cameron, once vocal about the dangers of artificial intelligence, has now expressed support for its use in filmmaking -- if it means cutting production costs without sacrificing jobs. Best known for directing blockbusters like Avatar and The Terminator, Cameron warned in 2023 that AI posed a significant threat to humanity. At the time, he even referenced " The Terminator, " his 1984 film that envisioned a dystopian future where machines rise against humans. However, today, the filmmaker has adopted a more pragmatic approach to AI. During a recent appearance on the Boz to the Future podcast, Cameron explained his new perspective, emphasising the need to adapt AI for practical purposes in the film industry. "The goal was to understand the space, to understand what's on the minds of the developers," he said, referring to his decision to join the Board of Directors at Stability AI in September 2024. Cameron clarified that his interest in AI is not rooted in replacing workers but in increasing efficiency in visual effects (VFX) production. "If we want to continue to see the kinds of movies that I've always loved and that I like to make -- Dune, Dune: Part Two, or one of my films -- we've got to figure out how to cut the cost of that in half," he said. He emphasised that this approach isn't about layoffs. "That's about doubling their speed to completion on a given shot," he explained. "So your cadence is faster and your throughput cycle is faster. Artists get to move on and do other cool things, and then other cool things, right? That's my sort of vision for that." In contrast, Indian filmmakers, especially those working on low budgets, often miss out on tech benefits." To be honest, technology has never truly benefited low-budget films," MG Srinivas, an Indian filmmaker, told AIM.

James Cameron Thinks AI Could Be Necessary To Keep Making Movies Like Dune

In some fictional world probably created by AI, John Connor is rolling over in his grave. On the the Boz to the Future podcast, Terminator director and former staunch AI detractor James Cameron not only explains his new support of AI but says it could be an essential tool if filmmakers want to keep making visually daring films like the Dune movies in the future. On the podcast, the three-time Oscar winner explains he changed his stance on AI being part of the filmmaking process for the same reason that can make almost anyone change their opinion on anything: money. No, he wasn't paid to change his opinion (as far as we know), but he harped on the financial burden incurred when crafting elaborate VFX-heavy films like his Avatar series and Denis Villeneuve's Dune movies. According to him, if we want to keep making such films, production costs have to come down, and AI might be the way to do that. "If we want to continue to see the kinds of movies that I've always loved and that I like to make and that I will go to see -- Dune, Dune: Part Two, or one of my films or big effects-heavy, CG-heavy films -- we've got to figure out how to cut the cost of that in half." He made sure to clarify that in his view, AI shouldn't replace humans' jobs, but accelerate them. AI should be "doubling their speed to completion on a given shot, so your cadence is faster and your throughput cycle is faster, and artists get to move on and do other cool things and then other cool things." It appears he views AI in movies as akin to the computer replacing the typewriter, rather than sentient killing machines replacing the human species. As practical as that may be, it still sounds like it came from bizzarro world when you remember that Cameron gave an ominous warning about AI back in 2023 when he told CTV News, "I warned you guys in 1984, and you didn't listen." Finding AI so horrifying that he references his 1984 film The Terminator, whose plot is set in motion by an AI that seeks to wipe out humanity, when warning about its dangers doesn't sound like a stance one can just pivot from in less than two years. Still, he's spent time since then studying the workings of AI, which may have contributed to the shift in his views. On the Boz to the Future podcast he discussed taking time to learn the nuances of the AI space in order to find a way to leverage its redeemable aspects to push filmmaking further. "The goal was to understand the space, to understand what's on the minds of the developers," he explained. "What are they targeting? What's their development cycle? How much resources you have to throw at it to create a new model that does a purpose-built thing, and my goal was to try to integrate it into a VFX workflow." To his credit, he never said AI should be writing movies, having said in 2023, " "I just don't personally believe that a disembodied mind that's just regurgitating what other embodied minds have said -- about the life that they've had, about love, about lying, about fear, about mortality -- and just put it all together into a word salad and then regurgitate it...I don't believe that have something that's going to move an audience." So he's not fully on the AI bandwagon. But he did join the Stability AI Board of Directors last September to help bring AI capabilities to future filmmakers. With Cameron on board, it could only be a matter of time before Hollywood begins finding ways to incorporate AI without killing us all.

James Cameron on using AI: That's about doubling the speed of completion

James Cameron, now on Stability AI's board, says AI should speed up production, not cut jobs. He aims to halve costs for effects-heavy films like Avatar by boosting workflow efficiency. Cameron joined the board to better understand AI development and integrate it into visual effects pipelines. Avatar 3 is expected to release in December.Filmmaker James Cameron says his vision for using AI doesn't lie in "laying off half the staff" but rather "doubling their speed to completion" to have space to create more content. Cameron, who is a board member of Stability AI's Board of Directors, is set to bring the third instalment to the "Avatar" franchise this year. "It's not just hypothetical. If we want to continue to see the kinds of movies that I've always loved and that I like to make and that I will go to see 'Dune,' 'Dune: Part Two', or one of my films or big effects-heavy, CG-heavy films, we've got to figure out how to cut the cost of that in half," the 70-year-old director said at Boz to the Future podcast. "Now that's not about laying off half the staff and at the effects company. That's about doubling their speed to completion on a given shot, so your cadence is faster and your throughout cycle is faster, and artists get to move on and do other cool things and then other cool things, right? That's my sort of vision for that." Explaining the reason for joining Stability AI's Board of Directors, he said he wanted to understand the space and the minds of developers. "The goal was to understand the space, to understand what's on the minds of the developers. What are they targeting? What's their development cycle? How much resources you have to throw at it to create a new model that does a purpose-built thing, and my goal was to try to integrate it into a VFX workflow," he said. Cameron's "Avatar 3" is slated to release in December.