Entertainment
‘Iron Man’ Cinematographer Matthew Libatique Says AI ‘Could Replace Marvel’ VFX, but They’ll Never ‘Use AI Actors’
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Published 10/30/2026 2:30:32 PM
Matthew Libatique Says AI 'Might Replace Marvel' but Not Marvel Stars
Stepping outside the airport in Mallorca, three-time Oscar-nominee cinematographer Matthew Libatique was taken aback by the light. He briefly delayed greetings so he could take it all in: the way the autumnal sun kissed baby-pink buildings and glistened against the island’s shores before setting behind the mountains.
This is an experience the veteran DP shared while speaking at Evolution Mallorca, the Spanish island’s leading film festival, where he is this year’s recipient of the Cinematography Icon Award.
When taking into consideration how passionate Libatique seems to be about the natural, how is he dealing with the fast-paced changes brought by artificial intelligence? The matter seems even more pertinent to the cinematographer, whose longest creative collaborator is “Black Swan” director Darren Aronofsky. The “Noah” filmmaker launched AI studio Primordial Soup last year in collaboration with Google DeepMind and is currently heavily invested in understanding how the technology might shape the future of cinema.
Asked by Variety whether or not he and Aronofsky have spoken about how AI might affect their collaboration, Libatique says they are currently “testing” the technology ahead of shooting their next film together. “We’ve discussed it,” he says. “We’re doing a test soon. I have a belief that the more you give to the system, the more it’s gonna have what you’re looking for. He wants to see how little you can do; we both want to learn more about it.”
The “Iron Man” cinematographer adds that AI “won’t replace cinema.” “What it could replace is Marvel,” he adds, clarifying that the major studio and others like DC “make these giant films and technology is clearly a part of it.” “They make their movies for so much money, I can understand why, through visual effects, they are going to have to employ AI to curb some of their costs,” he goes on, noting how he doesn’t think, however, that Marvel “will ever use AI actors.”
“They’ve always been able to get a personality into the characters, whether it’s Chris Evans or Robert Downey Jr.; these people become these characters people fall in love with,” he says. “I don’t think there’s going to be a Tilly Norwood Batwoman or Black Widow. You can’t tell me you’re going to make an AI character that can do what Robert Pattinson does. You can’t.”
Libatique brings up Zach Snyder’s “300” as an example of a film that could become an AI product in today’s day and age. The 2006 epic was filmed almost entirely against green screens in a massive warehouse, with the creative team constructing almost all landscapes digitally. “It was basically our early AI movie. If you want your movie to look that way, go for it. But, again, how do we connect [to it] as humans? The audience for some of these films is really limited. It’s limited by age, gender, and also by social interaction.”
“Nobody’s going to make ‘Sentimental Value’ with AI,” he emphasizes. “So I would pump the brakes on the idea that it is going to replace us all, because I don’t think there is going to be a time when we as a society turn our backs on cinema because we need it.”
Returning to Aronofsky, while Libatique can’t reveal further details on their next project and the full extent AI will be used in it, he is adamant the film will remain “human.” “We’re gonna make it like a movie. We’re gonna stand on set. Darren is gonna get on his knees, and he’s gonna move everything around with his fingers, and he’ll do what he usually does. But it’s a different thing, the AI. I don’t think it’s replacing what he does, but he’s interested.”
The cinematographer says one of the things the duo is discussing is “using the camera the way we use the camera and then see what this technology can do.” “[Aronofsky] has been given money to be able to explore this, so I applaud him for that. I feel I need to understand it better. I think you have to.”
While Libatique is “annoyed” by conversations around the technology, he can also see its benefits. The maestro DP says he has used AI in post-production and can see it being helpful to his craft when it comes to correcting glare, for example. “The machine learning how to do that is helpful to me, rather than sending it to another country so that some people who are getting $2 an hour can do it,” he adds.
When prodded as to how the technology is stripping away jobs from post-production experts, Libatique is quick to recognize the harsh reality of that situation. “I feel for them,” he says. “It’s insensitive for me to revel in the fact that I can do some of the things in a room that we can do now because it definitely took some work away. But that work was taken away from people in our industry anyway, and it was given to basically sweatshops in other countries. I guess the question is when does it end? When does it start really replacing people? It’s a mental exercise to try to figure that out: when is the next shoe that’s going to drop that’s going to affect everyone?”
The cinematographer recently had a parallel experience with AI usage in filmmaking when he shot Dustin Yellin’s “Goodbye Lamby.” The short film sees the director use artificial intelligence to imagine a world within one of his most famous sculptures. “In the old days, if you wanted to do it, you could do it with stop motion animation,” says Libatique. “But because we now have this thing that everybody is so enamored of, they made it in AI. And it was relatively successful because you’re not dealing with reality there.”
Libatique was surprised when the person responsible for the AI prompting asked him to physically light a space for a scene before she could move on with her work. “I talked to the person doing the prompting; there were things that she needed physically from me for her to create a shortcut for prompting,” he notes. “It was easier to place a light in the hole in the roof than it is for her to try to convince [the machine] to do what she wants.”
Paradoxically, despite admitting to using AI, the “A Star Is Born” cinematographer is concerned with how the technology “pulls its references” and issues of creative copyright. “On two occasions, someone has sent me AI videos where the machine was told to shoot in the style of Matthew Libatique,” he recalls. “How come everything I do is out for grabs? That’s absolutely offensive. I mean, I am flattered that somebody sent me this video, but it’s horrible.”
“I don’t have a distinctive style. I always try to find a story in what I do,” he goes on. “I don’t try to impose myself on a movie. I only impose myself in the sense that I’m trying to understand who the director I’m working with is so that I can use my skills to help that vision, whether it’s Olivia Wilde or Jodie Foster or Jon Favreau. AI is all the same; it’s so plastic. To take everything I’ve done and distill it into a style that is uniquely mine is completely incorrect.”
“The other thing is: who is in charge of prompting? Who has taste? The human element is what makes all films different,” he adds. “I already have a problem with how everything kind of looks the same [today]. Lighting has become homogeneous in films. Everything is like a Temu David Fincher. I see him over and over again because he’s such a visual reference for many of us. For me, what matters is the end result, and I haven’t seen anything created by AI that’s really impressed me – and I am not sure I will.”
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Mexico’s beloved Guillermo del Toro descended on the 24thMorelia Film Festival like the rockstar he is, greeted by hordes of shrieking fans that impressed even the most jaded in the crowd.
In town to present the much-anticipated 3D Re-Release of “Pan’s Labyrinth,” he was everywhere all at once, holding a masterclass where tickets were as elusive as a seat at Cannes that went on for nearly three hours and a free-wheeling press conference that extended past its time limit.
It was his third time at the fest, 20 years after his multi-Oscar winning “Pan’s Labyrinth’ first played there and years later with his 2018 best picture Academy Award winner “The Shape of Water.”
Before the presser kicked off, Del Toro, an Honorary Doctorate recipient from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), received the Filmoteca UNAM Medal, an honor also bestowed on Alfonso Cuarón, in town to support his son Jonas Cuarón’s opening night film, “Campeón Gabacho,” which he produced.
Alongside Del Toro were festival director Daniela Michel, “Pan’s Labyrinth” producer Bertha Navarro, his then young lead Ivana Baquero and DP Guillermo Navarro, who took home the cinematography Oscar for his stunning work on the anti-fascist fable.
Reflecting on a question posed midway through the press conference about what has stayed the same and what has changed over the 20 years since “Pan’s Labyrinth,” del Toro responded with tears.
“The state of our species and society today goes beyond anything we could have imagined back then. But I recognize the same sadness and despair. It pains me deeply to see one, two, or three generations fail the next. We’re handing down a world in ruins, morally, socially and spiritually fractured, with the very fabric that once allowed us to tell fables and parables falling apart.”
Asked whether he knew beforehand if “Pan’s Labyrinth” would be well received, Del Toro recounted how his collaborations with both Navarros sustained him through all the challenges they faced.
“We embarked on an adventure that was financially horrifying but cinematically beautiful,” he said.
“You never know how a film will be received. We only found out when we screened it for the first time at Cannes. We got that famous standing ovation that lasted more than 22 minutes, and from that moment on, everything changed. It changed our lives.”
“I think ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’ marked a before and after for me. In terms of creative freedom, possibilities and everything else, I’m where I am today because of that film. But none of it would have been possible without the faith of my immediate family, Bertha and Guillermo.”
Said DP Navarro: “Guillermo and I share the belief that cinematic language is storytelling through images that convey emotion and narrative. ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’ is the ultimate expression of that. The camera is constantly searching, discovering and communicating.”
“It was also an incredibly difficult shoot. We had a limited budget, had to find unconventional solutions and took risks that could easily have failed. But we gambled and we won. Without a doubt, it’s my best film, and I hold that experience close to my heart. I hope new generations will continue to discover and appreciate it. And now, 20 years later, it returns. Olé!”
Producer Navarro, who also backed Del Toro’s career-launching feature debut “Cronos” and his much-lauded “The Devil’s Backbone,” said: “When he gave me the screenplay for ‘Cronos,’ I was absolutely fascinated. Talent shines, and you have to know how to recognize that light. That’s what I saw in Guillermo.”
“It’s been an incredible privilege to have made those three great films with Guillermo. I’ve produced many films throughout my life, but those three hold a much deeper significance for me. They changed my life.”
Baquero concurred: “’Pan’s Labyrinth’ undoubtedly opened doors for me, both into the genre and in my career. We’ve talked this afternoon about how much the film changed our lives, professionally and personally. For me, acting went from being a hobby – I had worked before ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’ – to becoming my profession. Without that film, I might not be here today. It unquestionably marked a turning point in my career.”
Reflecting on its impact on young audiences. Del Toro noted: “There’s an urgency and a fragility and ferocity that coexist in ‘Pan’s Labyrinth.’ And somehow, I think it’s an urgent moment to speak, for the film to speak to a new audience.”
Local politics also crept into the conference, with a journalist asking him what he would say to the young people protesting in his hometown of Guadalajara over its current issues of contaminated water, repression and the alleged kidnapping of protesters on Oct. 11.
He responded:“This morning at my masterclass, I gave young people the floor to speak about these issues. It’s terrifying that something so fundamental should have to be fought for instead of being resolved through basic humanity and responsible leadership.”
“I said it clearly: “Their voices must be heard, and I stand with them 100%. It’s unacceptable that this remains unresolved or that anyone would try to silence them. Speaking out, protesting, and demanding a solution are fundamental rights – anytime, anywhere.”
The Morelia Film Festival began on Oct. 16 and wraps Oct. 25.
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The Japan IP Market will be back in Cannes next May for a second straight year. The Cannes Film Market and TIFFCOM, the content market of the Tokyo International Film Festival, are again teaming up on the event, and the 2027 edition will run May 14-15.
The return was revealed at TIFFCOM in Tokyo, during a conference on how Japan can forge new international partnerships after its stint as Country of Honor in Cannes. Alexandra Zakharchenko, head of industry programs at the Cannes Film Market, was among the panelists.
“The success of Japan, Country of Honor showed what can happen when a focused national presence creates lasting opportunities for the industry. The Japan IP Market is one of those outcomes: a collaboration that extends beyond a single edition and gives Japanese intellectual properties greater access to international partners,” said Guillaume Esmiol, executive director of the Cannes Film Market. “I’m delighted that we are continuing this work with TIFFCOM to create more opportunities for rights holders to connect with international producers and partners, develop new adaptations and bring their stories to global audiences.”
The Japan IP Market first ran in May 2026, one of the initiatives tied to Japan’s turn as Country of Honor at the Cannes Film Market. It put Japanese rights holders in the same room as industry professionals from abroad via pitches, one-on-one meetings and industry discussions. Kadokawa, Shochiku and Toei Company were among the companies taking part. The speaker lineup included Fujimura Tetsu, executive producer of “One Piece” and founder and CEO of Filosophia, Inc.
“The Japan IP Market is about creating the right conditions for business opportunities between Japanese rights holders and international companies,” said Zakharchenko. “By bringing them together in Cannes, we can help turn growing interest in Japanese content into concrete adaptation deals and acquisitions, while fostering new collaboration opportunities.”
Shiina Yasushi, executive adviser at UNIJAPAN and CEO of TIFFCOM, said the partnership with the Cannes market plays an important role for Japan’s audiovisual industry. He described the Cannes market as the biggest market attached to any film festival in the world. “Meeting the international professionals who gather there and creating together with them is the key to nurturing Japanese IP into global content,” he said.
Ikeda Kaori, managing director of TIFFCOM, said the first edition had shown how keen producers and partners worldwide are on Japanese IP. “Through the continued partnership linking Cannes in May with the Tokyo IP Market in October, we are pleased to offer more professionals the opportunity to meet Japanese rights holders directly and discover the rich diversity of Japanese IP,” she said.
The 2027 roster of companies and the rest of the program will be unveiled in the months ahead.
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