Acting performances using AI for 'enhancements' eligible for Golden Globes; but AI actors ineligible, say organisers

Weeks after Val Kilmer was resurrected by AI for an upcoming film, the Golden Globe Awards issued new guidelines over the eligibility of AI-led performances.

Updated on: May 8, 2026, 08:24:57 IST

By Abhimanyu Mathur

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After the Oscars ruled out AI actors from award contentions, the other major Hollywood awards - Golden Globes - have also said that performances by AI-generated actors will not be eligible. Organisers of the Golden Globe Awards clarified that new guidelines will not automatically disqualify performances that use artificial intelligence to enhance an actor, but will require that a live human be the main element.

An AI-resurrected Val Kilmer in As Deep As The Grave, an upcoming action film.

Golden Globes on AI in acting

Originally produced and presented by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the Golden Globes were acquired by Dick Clark Productions in 2024. The awards kick off Hollywood's awards season in January each year. On Thursday, the organisers said, “Submissions in which a performance is substantially generated or created by artificial intelligence are not eligible.”

But AI will not completely be banned from the prestigious awards, considered the precursor to Oscar glory. “The use of AI for technical or cosmetic enhancements (such as de-ageing, ageing, or visual modifications) may be permissible, provided the underlying performance remains that of the credited individual and AI does not replace or materially alter the performer's work,” the new rules added.

Oscars rule AI actors out of contention

The new rules come days after the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said it was cracking down on the use of AI. The body that doles out the Oscars said only real human performers -- not their AI avatars -- are eligible for the film world's biggest prizes, and screenplays must have been penned by a person, rather than a chatbot.

Weeks before the Oscars and Golden Globes ruled on AI use in acting, the first major use of AI to ‘bring back’ an actor to life was seen in Hollywood. An AI version of the late Val Kilmer was unveiled in the trailer for the archaeological action film As Deep as the Grave, telling another character: “Don't fear the dead and don't fear me.” The project was created with the enthusiastic support of the actor's family, who granted access to Kilmer's video archives, which were used to recreate the actor at multiple stages of his life.

The AI debate in Hollywood

The use of artificial intelligence remains one of the most sensitive issues in the entertainment industry and was central to the 2023 strikes that shut down Hollywood, as actors and writers warned that unchecked technology threatened their livelihoods.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Abhimanyu Mathur
Abhimanyu Mathur is Deputy Editor, Entertainment at Hindustan Times. With almost 15 years of experience in writing about everything from films and TV shows to cricket matches and elections, he inhales and exhales pop culture and news. Currently, he watches movies and TV shows and talks to celebrities for a living, while occasionally writing about them as well. A journalism graduate of Delhi College of Arts and Commerce, Delhi University, Abhimanyu began his career with Hindustan Times at the age of 20, swapping classrooms for newsrooms at an early age. He began his journey in the early days of digital journalism, later switching to the madness of print journalism. Work has led him to far off places like Japan and Jordan, as well as to the interiors of Haryana and the Indo-Pak border. He dabbled in city reporting in places like Meerut, Gurgaon, and Delhi, covered the Olympics and Cricket World Cups, before finding his calling in entertainment and lifestyle during the pandemic. A Rotten Tomatoes Certified Film Critic, he is equally at home covering stories on ground as he is interviewing celebrities and studios, and sometimes prefers to shepherd teams in delivering traffic through the day. Even as his role has evolved from reporter to supervisor over the years, his first love remains writing (and of late, talking on camera). With a good understanding of cinema and its trends, and a keen eye for detail, he continues to spark conversations around showbiz for readers around the world.Read More

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