Seth Rogen didn’t come to Cannes to play nice. When asked about generative AI’s growing role in filmmaking, he let it rip, and the internet hasn’t stopped talking about it since.
The comment that set everything off was pointed directly at a very specific corner of social media. “Every time I see a video on Instagram that’s like, ‘Hollywood is cooked,’ what follows is the most stupid dog shit I’ve ever seen in my life.” It’s the kind of quote that sticks because it’s exactly what a lot of people have been thinking but haven’t said out loud.
Seth Rogen Mocks the Concept of AI Video Writing in Cannes
Going deeper than simply pointing fingers at the problem, Seth Rogen elaborated on what real writing meant. “If your instinct is to use AI and avoid doing that, then don’t be a writer. Because you’re not doing your job if you’re using AI”. He added that being uncomfortable with the difficulty of creative writing is a normal reaction and not a thing to get rid of with automation. “The idea of a tool that would reduce the process of writing is unappealing because I like to write”.
The comments didn’t go unanswered. Cristóbal Valenzuela, the founder of AI video company called Runway, made a satirical tweet that compares Rogen’s stance to Mark Twain rejecting the idea of the typewriter. That type of rhetoric comparing a creative task to simple office tasks in no way helped to prove his argument, at least for most people.
Why Seth Rogen’s Comments Are Noteworthy
There’s an explanation why Rogen’s comments had a special meaning for Cannes audience. He was in Cannes to promote an animated movie Tangles released in 2026 that tells a story about a girl with her Alzheimer’s-diagnosed mother and which was animated only using traditional methods of hand-drawing animations.
“The human touch is there in each frame”, Seth told the audience about his movie, which isn’t surprising, considering that his wife Lauren Miller Rogen produced the movie inspired by her mother’s early-onset Alzheimer’s diagnosis.
And Rogen’s comments came at a great time because of the new policy introduced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. From now on, screenplays written using AI won’t be considered eligible for Oscars.
Now it’s safe to say that the AI debate in Hollywood got one step hotter with Seth Rogen’s comments.