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Academy updates Oscar rules to exclude AI-generated work
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on Friday that only human-performed acting and human-authored writing will be considered for Oscar nominations, marking a significant shift in its eligibility criteria amid growing use of artificial intelligence in filmmaking.
Key changes to eligibility requirements
The updated rules explicitly state that acting must be "demonstrably performed by humans" and writing must be "human-authored" to qualify for nominations. The Academy described these adjustments as a "substantive" revision to its long-standing policies.
While the Academy has not imposed a blanket ban on AI tools in filmmaking, it emphasized that only human creativity will be recognized in these two categories. The decision reflects concerns over the increasing role of AI in replacing or replicating human work in the industry.
AI's growing influence in Hollywood
Recent months have seen high-profile examples of AI's expanding role in filmmaking. Actor Val Kilmer, who passed away in 2025, is set to be digitally recreated using AI for a lead role in an upcoming project. Last year, London-based actor and comedian Eline van der Velden revealed she had developed an entirely AI-generated actor to "become a global superstar."
The issue of AI-generated scripts was also a central point of contention during the Hollywood writers' strike two years ago, as studios explored using AI to draft screenplays. This has sparked broader debates about the ethical and legal implications of AI in creative industries.
AI tools and copyright concerns
AI technologies rely on large language models (LLMs) trained on decades of human-created text, images, and video. This has led to legal disputes, with Hollywood studios, actors, and authors filing lawsuits against AI companies for alleged copyright infringement.
The Academy's new guidelines do not prohibit the use of AI in other aspects of filmmaking. According to the updated rules, AI tools used outside of acting and writing "neither help nor harm the chances of achieving a nomination."
"The Academy and each branch will judge the achievement, taking into account the degree to which a human was at the heart of the creative authorship when choosing which movie to award," the Academy stated.
Flexibility and future scrutiny
The Academy reserved the right to request additional information about the use of generative AI and the extent of human involvement if questions arise during the nomination process.
While technology has long been integral to filmmaking-such as the widespread use of computer-generated imagery (CGI) since the 1990s-the Academy's latest move underscores the distinction between human-driven creativity and AI-driven automation. Unlike CGI, which is typically a manual process refined by artists, AI tools are designed to automate tasks through simple prompts.
