The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has revised its eligibility criteria, requiring human authorship and performance consent for acting and screenplay categories, to safeguard the role of human creativity in the age of generative AI.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has tightened its Oscar eligibility rules to draw a clearer line around artificial intelligence, saying that acting nominations will go only to performances carried out by humans with their consent and that screenplays must be human-authored to qualify. According to reporting by TechCrunch and the Associated Press, the Academy is not banning AI from filmmaking altogether, but it is signalling that human creativity must remain at the centre of the awards process.

The revised policy arrives as Hollywood continues to wrestle with the practical and cultural fallout from generative AI. Recent headlines have included an AI-generated version of Val Kilmer in an independent film project and renewed attention on Tilly Norwood, the AI “actress” that has prompted industry debate. The issue was already a flashpoint in the actors’ and writers’ strikes in 2023, when concerns over the use of synthetic voices, likenesses and writing tools became central to negotiations.

The Academy has also kept room for case-by-case scrutiny. The organisation said it can ask film teams for further details about how AI was used and how much human authorship was involved, a sign that submissions containing digital assistance will not be ruled out automatically. Reuters-style coverage of the new rules indicates that some AI-assisted tools may still be acceptable elsewhere in production, as long as they do not displace human performance or writing at the core of a submission.

That leaves the writing categories with the sharpest boundary. Screenplays must be human-authored and carry an explicit screenwriting credit to be eligible, while acting categories require performances that are demonstrably human and consent-based. The move is likely to be welcomed by filmmakers and guild members who have argued that awards should recognise human labour, though critics say the policy may prove difficult to police in practice as AI becomes more deeply embedded in studio workflows.

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Source: Noah Wire Services