A24 Defends $75 Million DeepMind Deal as Fans and a 2026 Director Push Back
Updated
Updated · Kotaku · Jun 27
A24 Defends $75 Million DeepMind Deal as Fans and a 2026 Director Push Back
3 articles · Updated · Kotaku · Jun 27
Summary
Sophia Shin said A24’s $75 million partnership with Google DeepMind is a research effort meant to help artists shape AI tools, after the studio faced immediate backlash from its fan base.
A24 argued it wants “a seat at the table” to influence new workflows rather than have tools imposed on filmmakers, extending an explanation it had already offered a day earlier.
Online reaction remained overwhelmingly hostile, with criticism spreading from social media to the r/A24 subreddit and showing little sign that the studio’s damage control changed minds.
Kane Parsons, director of A24’s profitable 2026 film Backrooms, said in his Discord server that none of those resources should be spent on his project and that he doubts most directors support the decision.
The dispute now threatens to widen from fan anger to filmmaker resistance, raising pressure on A24 as AI partnerships spread across Hollywood.
Has A24's $75 million Google AI deal destroyed the very indie brand that made it so valuable?
With AI tools entering the director's toolkit, will human creativity be amplified or ultimately automated?
A24 and Google DeepMind’s $75 Million Collaboration: How AI Is Transforming Independent Cinema and Creative Labor
Overview
A24 and Google DeepMind have entered a landmark multi-year partnership, announced on June 22, 2026, that brings together independent cinema and advanced artificial intelligence. This collaboration is designed as a deep research and development effort, spanning multiple projects to help artists develop new workflows and techniques. The main goal is to ensure that future AI tools are shaped by the creators who will use them, reflecting A24’s forward-thinking approach. By actively participating in the development of these tools, A24 aims to influence how AI supports artistic vision, rather than simply adopting existing solutions.