Antonio Banderas is set to play the conquistador Hernán Cortés in 'Cortés', a feature Utopai Studios is making with AI tools under director Paul Mignot. Variety broke the news and ANI carried it on 12 October.
Oscar nominee Nicholas Kazan wrote it, and it is in production in Paris as a co-production with Ex Machina Studios, a new company that pitches an ethical, artist-first use of AI. The story follows the 1519 Yucatán expedition through Marina, an enslaved Indigenous woman and linguist.
Utopai rebranded as an entertainment studio last year with 'Cortés' among its first projects; production designer Kirk Petruccelli was then set to make his directorial debut on it. Its slate also holds the AI-assisted animation 'The Most Serious Fart' and the fully AI-generated 'Journey to the West' with China's Huace.
The industry remains divided on AI in production, and Banderas is the latest veteran to align with an AI company. 'Cortés', 'The Most Serious Fart' and the live-action 'Half Moon' are all due next year.
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