The relationship between Star Wars and its fans is at a delicate moment since the trilogy of sequel films that Disney released to take advantage of its acquisition caused divided opinions and very strong reactions. There is no shortage of fans who say they can improve films with alternative endings, but there are others who say they improve them with something other than complaining about the script or the directors. An example of this is the youtuber Shamook who practices with deepfakes and managed to improve the appearance of the cameo of a young Mark Hamill in the last episode of the second season of The Mandalorian.
This effect of digitally de-aging actors was already used for the first time in the film X-Men: First Generation to make Sir Ian McKellen and Sir Patrick Stewart appear younger without wearing prosthetics. Lucasfilm took many years off Mark Hamill to make him appear the same age as when Return of the Jedi ended.
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Improving the effects can get you a job at LucasFilm
Shamook has spent years testing the technology of deepfakes to implant faces of certain actors in the bodies of others, or improving the visual quality of Star Wars films. His video in which he improved the result of a Mark Hamill compared to what LucasFilm gave us in the second season of the most successful and ambitious Disney + series was a viral success.
After enhancing Mark Hamill's rejuvenated head in The Mandalorian, he continued to deepfake movies other than Star Wars, clearly warning that they are so as not to try to fool anyone. He put Mel Gibson in Mad Max Fury Road, Tom Holland in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man movies, and he even demonstrated what Robert Pattinson would look like as Batman for his future movie. All of this has earned him recognition with deepfake technology, which has been enough to impress LucasFilm herself into hiring him.
In addition to the good news that someone has gotten a job in the special effects industry thanks to the results of their personal projects, it also tells us a little about what the future of Star Wars and cinema will be like. We have seen how it is becoming standardized to put young versions of characters with many years, or aging them, or even resurrecting them. Deepfakes promise to be one of the technologies that the film industry is going to implement the most in its films due to the possibilities it offers.
Source: Gizmodo
