Tom Hanks is de-aged by decades—thanks to AI—in his new movie, Here. The effect is pulled off by Metaphysics Live, a generative AI digital retouching tool. Though the veteran star is now 68, at times in this film Hanks looks as fresh-faced as he did 40 years ago, recalling his roles in Splash and Bachelor Party.
He is also made to appear older in the film, which follows his character through most of his life spent in the same house.
State-of-the-art effects are nothing new to Here director Robert Zemeckis, who experimented with digital technology in films such as The Polar Express, Beowulf, and A Christmas Carol. However, Zemeckis isn’t the first to try de-aging techniques. They were previously employed by Martin Scorsese to “youthify” Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Joe Pesci in The Irishman, and similarly used on Will Smith in Gemini Man and Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, among others.
As this technology becomes more commonplace, it may mean that Hollywood stars never again need to worry about aging on screen—since all their wrinkles can be fixed in post-production.
– Sandro Monetti