© A24 - NEON

The journey to bring Artificial to the screen has been as dramatic as its subject matter. The summer of 2026 saw Amazon MGM Studios abruptly exit production, reportedly due to fears of upsetting Sam Altman in real life – a move many attributed to the cozy relationship between Jeff Bezos and the OpenAI boss. This abandonment left the Luca Guadagnino-directed biopic seemingly stranded, threatening its very existence. However, a dramatic turn of events in July saw independent distributor NEON (known for critically acclaimed films like I, Tonya, Parasite, Longlegs, and Anora) step in, guaranteeing the film a theatrical release. After teasing audiences with a first intriguing image, NEON has now unleashed a full-length trailer. This suffocating first video plunges viewers headfirst into an unsettling atmosphere, blending technological paranoia with apocalyptic prophecy.

The Artificial War

Artificial is set to revisit the seismic events of November 2023, when OpenAI's board of directors ousted Altman from his position, only to reinstate him five days later to widespread applause. However, the narrative is also expected to trace the origins of ChatGPT, starting in 2003 with Soviet computer scientist Ilya Sutskever (Yura Borisov), who was mentored by Geoffrey Hinton (Mark Rylance), before his path at Google intersected with the ambitious Sam Altman.

From its opening seconds, the trailer raises questions. A sleek, black, Batmobile-esque vehicle appears, from which Altman emerges, exuding the aura of a Silicon Valley guru entering his fortress. The imagery then shifts into survivalist delirium as the character is followed to a neon-blue lit vault, stocked with rows of assault rifles. It's hard not to interpret this as a depiction of an oligarchical class, steeped in catastrophism, actively preparing for the end of the world.

artificial Toasting the apocalypse

The trailer is underscored by voice-over predictions that foretell the outright collapse of current civilization: "States will fall. Industries will be destroyed. And we will be there, as shepherds, to guide the people into this new world." All of this culminates in Andrew Garfield's final, chilling smirk – the smile of a sociopath contemplating the apocalypse he's about to unleash upon humanity.

Behind the camera, Luca Guadagnino directs, with Damon Albarn (the mastermind behind Blur and Gorillaz) composing the original score. In front of the camera, Andrew Garfield leads a star-studded cast including Yura Borisov (Anora), Monica Barbaro as Mira Murati, Cooper Hoffman as Greg Brockman, Jason Schwartzman, Chris O’Dowd, Mark Rylance, and a surprisingly cast Ike Barinholtz as Elon Musk.

Artificial is slated to make its grand debut on October 5, 2026, at the New York Film Festival (NYFF) – a familiar venue for Guadagnino, who has previously premiered Call Me by Your Name, Bones and All, Queer, and After the Hunt there. The film will then arrive in US theaters for Christmas, on December 25, 2026. A French release date is yet to be announced.