„Er ist ein analoger Mann in einer digitalen KI-Welt“: Nolans „The Odyssey“ hat sein 250-Millionen-Dollar-Budget in drei Tagen ohne branchenweite KI-Kostenkürzungen zurückerhalten
https://fortune.com/2026/07/21/nolan-the-odyssey-250m-budget-3-days-no-ai/?utm_source=reddit/
26 Kommentare
Nolan’s film appears to be a direct counterweight to the moment Hollywood is having with AI. Netflix has already spent up to $600 million acquiring Ben Affleck’s AI filmmaking startup and told shareholders AI touched roughly 300 titles in 2026, cutting visual-effects costs in half on some scenes. Amazon MGM’s head of AI Studios, Albert Cheng, has put the ambition even more bluntly: “We can actually fit five movies into what we would typically spend on one.”
But Nolan has built his identity on the opposite instinct. An outspoken skeptic of “AI slop,” his filmmaking—70mm film, practical effects, the studied refusal to take shortcuts—makes an argument for elaborate human authorship.
“He’s an analog man in a digital AI world, and I think that’s incredibly appealing,” Dergarabedian said. “AI is a fantastic tool, but it’s not a replacement for creativity.”
What separates Nolan’s work from a prompt-generated facsimile, Dergarabedian argued, is both technical polish and “heart and soul.” In an era when “a lot of people are punching in a prompt to create a movie,” the handcrafted alternative becomes “a very recognizable differentiator,” Dergarabedian told *Fortune.*
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They’ll use AI to find a way to make sure this doesn’t happen in the future.
Christopher Nolan makes films. MAKES.
I’m guessing the source is unaware of the economics of theatrical releases.
After watching Tenet, I believe he is also the backwards man.
Even though it isn’t generative AI, the aesthetic of *Doomsday* might as well be. Nolan’s visuals still manage to deliver genuine spectacle. Very few filmmakers are doing what he does.
We absolutely MUST stop calling it AI. Its not legitimate ai. It’s just refurbished shit. It’s a slop machine. Call it the slop machine.
All shareholders and executives hear is “So Nolan’s film could have made even more money if we used Ai to cut costs?”
How…how would he have used it?
The movied being *made* now use AI
Odyssey was *released* now?
Movie has not made back its money. At best ticket sale splits with theaters are 50-50 on top of the marketing budget which is likely another 150 million. The movie will have to make 750-850 million to break even.
Digital or analog or whatever has nothing to do with it. Nolan just knows what tf he’s doing.
People like to consume media created by people. Holy shit, who could have seen this coming?
It’s almost like he studies film and loves what he does and gives it his best! Like me at the grocery store. But do I get accolades?? Not even from my wife.
“Cost cutting” like AI isn’t more expensive than just doing things normally.
What do you mean without AI cost cutting.
wtf does this mean? If he’s a computer graphics – which literally every movie does then he’s using AI and AI cost cutting. Things like green screening is heavy AI these days and a lot less work is done manually frame by frame.
Do they mean using AI in writing? Writers can choose how they write scripts.
What type of magical “AI cost savings” are they referring to?
I can’t read the article but throwing in AI feels like clickbait.
I wonder what wrong takeaways executives will get from this…
Probably: lots of big name stars, race swapping to incite online discussion and sandal epics = big bucks.
I think it made it back in presale, tickets alone.
Christopher Nolan has the clout AND the tools to back it up. When he turns in a script he already knows how he is going to address the practical effects because he thinks deeply about it and knows where to hire the right team to execute his vision. And a studio isn’t going to tell him no until his movies stop making back their money.
There has always been and always will be a market for “handcrafted” work, be it in luxury cars, watches, art, etc., even when the mass-produced alternatives are good quality. I see this future for films as well. AI will get good enough to easily make (or take over a majority of components of making) decent enough films for the masses, but there will always be a niche for true virtuosos that refuse to take the easy route
Except to make money he needs another 500 million by Hollywood accounting. 250 is not even breaking even because you need to tack marketing costs
The great thing about Nolan is that he *makes the money* so the studio pretty much has to do things his way, and if they don’t like it he will find a different studio.
Nolan is the best to ever do it.
I don’t understand why Netflix needed to spend 600M on Affleck’s AI company. Did the company create new AI tools or are they simply using existing AI tools? Why would Netflix need to buy the company if it’s not doing something new? There are way too many decisions being made a companies by top managers who want to get in on the „We must use AI for everything!“ bandwagon and are buying AI startups they don’t need.
There seems to be a huge backlash against AI even outside of social media. Since it’s a new technology there isn’t any laws or regulation. If members of Congress weren’t so corrupt they would create legislation that any product that uses AI has a label on it. „AI was used for this picture“ „AI was used for parts of this movie“ „AI was used for this marketing material“ „AI was used to create this product“ „This chatbot is AI“ etc. They can’t ban AI but they can allow consumers to decide if they want to support companies using it. But instead they will focus on more important things like Crockett getting in a fight about not supporting the World Cup because she thinks Argentina is a racist country or they’re one „mental health leave“ for months while voting against legislation that would have provided all Americans with more paid family and personal leave time.
Went to a screening of Young Washington, which I guess was decent in a vacuum. I heard rumors of AI being used and there were a few shots that definitely gave off the fake AI vibe.
Then went to see Odyssey and it made Young Washington look like a student film in its mastery of storytelling.
I don’t know what this movie has to do with AI. There’s no movie out there using AI in a meaningful way. This obsession with AI taking over Hollywood, when Hollywoods problems are streaming, ballooning budgets, ticket prices, and lukewarm nostalgia bait should be where the conversation is.
Weird, take a good story and do it right and it seems things work out in the end. Take a bad story and put a bunch of cgi and stuff and its just not as good. Go figure.