Andy Serkis has said he used to be "evangelical" about performance capture after playing Gollum, but has now accepted that the technology is widely misunderstood. The actor spoke to The Times, stating, "Because this technology is so misunderstood, I used to be evangelical." He added, "If you get it?
Great." Serkis said he "never really cared about" being associated with his digitally altered roles, which also include Kong in King Kong and Caesar in the Planet of the Apes trilogy. He compared the work to physical prosthetics, arguing that "performances like Gollum are authored by an actor" in the same way that prosthetics teams worked on John Hurt in The Elephant Man.
His comments follow remarks from Peter Jackson in May. The director said the debate over AI in film makes it harder for characters like Gollum to win awards.
"I don't think a Gollum-type character or a generated character has any hope for winning any awards," he said, calling it unfair in Serkis's case. He added that Serkis's performance was "a human-generated performance 100% of the way."
Serkis next directs and stars in The Hunt for Gollum, scheduled for 17 December 2027. The cast includes Ian McKellen as Gandalf, Elijah Wood as Frodo, Lee Pace as King Thranduil, Kate Winslet as Marigol, Jamie Dornan as Strider, and Leo Woodall as Halvard, with Anya Taylor-Joy playing an elf.
His memoir, My Pressures: The Bizarrely True Story of Andy Serkis, is also out now. The industry continues to grapple with the intersection of technology and traditional acting.
Serkis remains a pioneer in this field, having spent decades refining the nuances of motion capture. His transition from being a vocal advocate to a more philosophical observer reflects the evolving nature of Hollywood's relationship with digital artistry.
As the release of his upcoming project approaches, fans and critics alike are eager to see how Serkis will push the boundaries of performance capture further. The debate regarding the recognition of these roles at major award ceremonies remains a significant topic of discussion among filmmakers and industry experts globally.