Nicolas Cage is speaking out against Amazon after the company, which developed “Spider-Noir” for Prime Video, allegedly asked him to sign an AI waiver.
“Amazon is a very AI-friendly company, to the tune of $50 billion invested in OpenAI,” Cage said Saturday during a panel on the Empire Stage at New York Comic Con. “I am not an AI-friendly actor, so it’s like, connect those dots! I’m not a member of their club. I didn’t sign the waiver to let him use AI on ‘Spider Noir.’ I’m probably not going to be working with that studio again, but that’s okay.”
Amazon canceled the superhero series after just one season last month, days before the first weekend of the Emmy Awards, where it had earned 11 nominations (the most of any Prime Video program this year). The cancellation was a shocker to many in the industry, considering the series amassed 2.6 billion minutes viewed in its first six weeks and earned praise from critics and audiences alike.
Cage went on to tell the Comic-Con audience that he hopes to work with the rising class of Gen-Z filmmakers, praising “Backrooms” director Kane Parsons, who parlayed his YouTube fame into a Hollywood career. The horror film dethroned “Marty Supreme” as the highest-grossing release in A24’s history.
“I got to get with these young directors who are Gen Z, and they’re going at it their own way, whether it’s through the YouTube culture or whatever it is,” Cage said. “They’re doing it from scratch and by hand. I want to get with that.”
Cage also expressed interest in doing more television after starring in “Spider-Noir,” which marked his first leading role in a TV series. He then slipped the news that his next project will be a season of “True Detective.”
“My agent’s out there somewhere listening,” Cage quipped. “That’s okay that I’m the first to announce that, right?”