Amazon has shelved a nearly finished film about OpenAI chief Sam Altman, months after pouring $50 billion into the company behind ChatGPT.
Key Points:
- Amazon MGM Studios pulled the completed biopic "Artificial" before its planned release.
- The reversal follows a $50 billion Amazon investment in OpenAI made in February.
- Producers will now shop the Andrew Garfield project to rival studios.
Amazon Shelves Altman Film
Trade reporters first broke the story Friday, and Amazon MGM Studios soon confirmed it would not release "Artificial," the drama directed by Luca Guadagnino.
The call came from Mike Hopkins, who runs Prime Video and the studio. Producers will now seek another buyer.
A spokesperson praised Guadagnino's work and said the picture would be better served at a different studio that could give it a fuller release. Made for a reported $40 million, the film has drawn comparisons to "The Social Network" for the AI age, with parts shot in San Francisco and Italy.
Amazon had kept every version of the script and fast-tracked the shoot last year, so the late reversal surprised many across the film business. Test screenings reportedly drew a warm reception. The movie also screened for rival studios on Thursday, a day before reports of the cancellation surfaced.
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OpenAI Deal Draws Scrutiny
The timing has raised eyebrows.
Amazon deepened its OpenAI ties in February, when it invested $50 billion and agreed to run the company's models for business clients through Amazon Web Services, expanding an earlier cloud pact between the two.
The studio's parent now holds a direct financial stake in the subject of its own movie. The film, written by former "SNL" staffer Simon Rich, depicts Altman and Elon Musk in an unflattering light, one outlet reported. Musk helped fund OpenAI in its early days, later walked away, and now fights the company in court.
The 2023 Firing Saga
"Artificial" revisits the turbulent week in November 2023, when OpenAI's board removed Altman and brought him back within five days. It pairs Andrew Garfield as Altman with Monica Barbaro as former technology chief Mira Murati, Yura Borisov as co-founder Ilya Sutskever and Ike Barinholtz as Musk.
That 2023 standoff erupted after directors accused Altman of being less than candid, then unraveled as staff threatened to quit and Microsoft offered them all jobs. Altman returned within days, and most of the board that removed him stepped aside.
The episode still ranks among the sharpest crises of OpenAI's rise.
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