AI Movies Are No Threat to Hollywood

Why Hollywood’s Fear of AI-Generated Movies Might Be More Fiction Than Fact

Hollywood is having a moment. Not the glitzy, red-carpet kind, but the kind filled with existential dread. The enemy this time isn’t streaming services, box office bombs, or even actors on strike.

It’s text-to-video AI tools like OpenAI’s Sora. These platforms are accused of threatening Hollywood’s creative dominance.

Consider this alarm from Fran Drescher, president of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), who called AI an "existential threat to creative professions."

But let’s cut to the punchline: even the tamest Hollywood content wouldn’t pass the strict moderation (i.e. censorship) standards of these AI tools.

The result?

At best, an AI-produced Hallmark greeting card—and, at worst, hardly a threat to the Hallmark channel.

AI Moderation: Where Creativity Goes to Die?

Here’s the deal: AI tools like Sora are designed with strict safeguards to avoid controversy.

If Hollywood blockbusters were run through AI moderation, we’d probably see half of them flagged for “explicit violence,” “hateful content,” or “overly dramatic explosions.”

How about The Godfather? Surely this cinematic classic would make the cut, right? Wrong. REJECTED. “Themes of organized crime and morally ambiguous characters not suitable for AI standards.”

Even Toy Story might get flagged if the algorithm catches a hint of that existential crisis Woody has when Buzz steals the spotlight. “Depiction of psychological distress among toys,” the content warning would read.

The pendulum has swung so far that even mildly boundary-pushing content gets the axe.

Independent creators—those AI is supposed to empower—often find their visions stifled by overzealous censors.

For example, imagine a filmmaker crafting a story about a community healing after a horrific tragedy.

The story is about unity, resilience, and overcoming grief. But because the narrative involves a violent crime as the catalyst for that healing, the project is flagged and rejected.

The AI sees the “violent content” but misses the redemption arc entirely.

This isn’t just a hypothetical.

Many critical, human stories depend on showing difficult truths to reach their uplifting conclusions. Without the ability to include those raw moments, creators are left telling sanitized versions of reality that strip their stories of authenticity.

Hollywood’s Fear Is Overblown

Here’s the irony: Hollywood has little to fear from AI tools. If anything, these platforms’ strict moderation ensures they won’t be producing the next Pulp Fiction or Breaking Bad.

Hollywood’s edgy, boundary-pushing content is safe…for now. But for independent creators, the stakes are higher.

These platforms represent an incredible opportunity to bypass traditional studios and tell their stories directly. The problem is, these tools fail to see the forest for the trees. They evaluate content in isolated pieces, not as a cohesive whole.

AI moderation shouldn’t operate like a referee handing out penalties for individual fouls without watching the whole game. Instead, it should judge content based on its complete arc.

Was that violent scene gratuitous, or was it essential to the story’s resolution? Did the controversial element add depth, or was it just shock value?

By examining projects holistically, AI tools could empower creators to tackle complex subjects responsibly. After all, the best stories often emerge from exploring the gray areas of life—not just sticking to black-and-white morality.

Hollywood’s concern about AI is misplaced. But creators’ frustrations? Those are real.

Final Thoughts

The real battle isn’t AI vs. Hollywood—it’s AI vs. true storytelling. Here’s hoping these platforms lighten up a bit and let creators tackle the tough subjects that make stories truly matter.

Martin Mawyer is president of the Christian Action Network, which he founded in 1990. Located in Lynchburg, VA, CAN was formed as a non-profit educational organization to protect America’s religious and moral heritage. He is the author of several books, including You Are Chosen: Prepare to Triumph in a Fallen World.