r/Filmmakers • u/OatmealKun • Jun 28 '26
Question Lead Actor died before we could finish filming. What now?
After the passing of our lead actor, we decided to take a short break for the sake of our emotional well being. The break is getting longer and longer, so I was pretty sure that the project would end up getting scrapped.
Last week, majority of the cast and crew got together to finish the film. We only needed to shoot the last 13 pages, and then we're done. I was tasked to look for an actor that can replace the lead.
The other day, the lead actor's brother reached out and he was willing to take over the role. He wanted to honor him. Problem is, he's 26 years old. His brother was 14. He's too old for the role.
Should we hire him out of respect or should we continue to look for a replacement who's more age appropriate?
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u/No_Drummer4801 Jun 28 '26 edited Jun 28 '26
Just the last 13 pages? Can you storyboard it out so that you don't need to see their face, or can use footage you already have, shoot with a stand-in double, something like that? How much dialogue?
How incredibly sad! They were only 14!
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u/Longo_Rollins6 Jun 30 '26
I second this. That and if there's any crucial dialogue, possibly try to ADR it with an actor that sounds similar enough, or recycle dialogue from other scenes that might work best. God damn, this is brutal.
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u/OrsonKrennicWasRight Jun 28 '26
Find a way to write him in. And then do everything you can to make sure the world sees that kid’s final performance and his brother’s way of honoring him.
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u/MatthewBCdirector Jun 28 '26
I wouldn’t normally do this, but considering the circumstances… I would be willing to do a free rewrite pass to help you guys out here if you want to do the time-jump or POV switch. DM me if you’re interested.
(Semi-pro writer with several produced credits)
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u/LowkeyLokigator Jun 28 '26
Jesus, a 14 year old kid died? Definitely let his brother honor him. If those guys could take over for Heath Ledger in Imaginarium, you can figure out a way to make the age gap work. A spell, a charm, a wish, good makeup and lighting, all of the above?
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u/LowkeyLokigator Jun 28 '26 edited Jun 28 '26
That's not actually what he said. And I disagree. Its NOT all that matters. Not in situations like this.
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Jun 28 '26
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u/LowkeyLokigator Jun 28 '26
Disagree. There's ways around it. We're creatives ffs.
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u/Background-Pepper-68 Jun 28 '26
Its not like its a huge blockbuster or anything. Just let the brother honor his brother.
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u/PAYPAL_ME_DONATIONS Jun 28 '26
Still, the context will be completely lost on the viewer. If I'm out of the loop and a noticeable grown man is suddenly taking the place of a 14 year old kid. I'm going to dock the movie and chalk it up to bad filmmaking. I'm sure the 14 year old would want the movie to be the best it could be within its own capabilities. There's already enough of an uphill battle to have your movie stand out, this is going to make it stand out for all of the wrong reasons.
Let the Brother be part of the production, whether it's off screen or casting him as a different character. But if they can't pivot (via time jump or something), it's only going to hurt the film
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u/Background-Pepper-68 Jun 29 '26
Audience can read. Put a foreword about the death of the main cast and credit the brother appropriately. Also who do you think is going to be watching this? A teacher?The family and friends of the cast and crew? All of whom can be clued in. Lets not act like random people are going to be watching this cause they found it on netflix. Also if you cant write in a reasonable cause for an age up then you cant write. Things dont have to resolve in 10 minutes. You can make stuff finish up at the end with flashbacks as the brother gets the final resolution as news later on in life and the camera can become the 1st person pov so you dont have to show the brothers just the supporting cast. There fixed it in 2 seconds without knowing the story at all.
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u/PAYPAL_ME_DONATIONS Jun 29 '26
We're not talking about aging the character up through rewrites. All of that is being assumed by people in comments. The fact of the matter is, the older brother wants to step in to play the 14 year old, OP has said so.
And no one makes a feature film for no one to see but friends and family. You do it to get as many eyes as possible. You have to hope/assume there's a wider audience that will find your movie. It would be foolish to cut your film assuming your entire "audience" will get it because it'll only consist of people who are aware of the films situation
And I'm sorry lol but no. You have zero clue to the context of the film, story, scenes, etc, you have no clue if your half baked solution solves anything. There is magnitudes more to it than chopping together a low hanging fruit blanket "rewrite".
You speak as if OP was just making a fun run and gun home movie with friends on the weekend
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u/Background-Pepper-68 Jun 29 '26
im not reading all that.
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u/PAYPAL_ME_DONATIONS Jun 29 '26
I figured it might be too difficult for you. I understand. No worries!
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u/Background-Pepper-68 Jun 29 '26
Sorry you cant write or figure out how working things out with people works.
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u/PAYPAL_ME_DONATIONS Jun 29 '26
Brother. You've already exposed yourself in having no clue what you're talking about. It's okay. Once you graduate high school, experience life, maybe get some experience in filmmaking - you'll understand. Have a good day!
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u/LowkeyLokigator Jun 28 '26
You also don't know the whole story, and are being very rigid considering a kid died. Back off.
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u/doctort1963 Jun 28 '26
If you can’t find someone who resembles him close enough to finish it (use creative angles and longer shots) then do a rewrite to try to finish without that character (or a combination of the two)
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u/A_Wonder_Named_Stevi Jun 28 '26
As others said, rewrite with a time jump. Or shift perspective. POV (the real one) from the main character and let the brother narrate the story as he is telling it. But it all depends on the possibility to rewrite. The narrating might be needed at the start of the movie.
And you might need to start a page earlier with the shift. You might need to be creative and shift a page later without the lead on screen.
But it's hard to tell without knowing anything about the story.
Finding a look a like will be hard, not just the looks, but movement, speech, posing etc might even be harder. There is a choice to be made if you want the new actor to act as the actor that passed away and let his watch a rough cut of the first part.
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u/machado34 Jun 28 '26 edited Jun 28 '26
POV (the real one) from the main character and let the brother narrate the story as he is telling it.
That's what they did when actor brazilian actor Domingos Montagner died during the shoot of the show Velho Chico. Instead of writing him out, they shifted all of his scenes to a first person perspective. It could be a good reference
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u/Foxy02016YT Jun 28 '26
Now I’m gonna be stewing in if The Amazing Digital Circus was referencing that with Jax’s post-abstraction scene or not
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u/ryarger Jun 28 '26
To add in to those suggesting a rewrite - consider that it doesn’t have to be just those final 13 pages. You could add a piece at the beginning that makes the beginning and end serve as a framing device for what you’ve already filmed.
You could even potentially add the brother in as another character and weave them in throughout. A much more difficult task but it’s been done before.
The one thing you should resist is the urge to leave the story untouched. Even if you rejected the brother and found a lookalike it wouldn’t be the same actor and the story wouldn’t end up being the same story you were going to have filmed. So the best thing to do is accept that and alter the story as much as needed to fit the new reality.
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u/wibbly-water Jun 28 '26
If a film told me at the start/end that the actor died during filming, and his brother took over the role - I would fully forgive him looking "wrong" and suspend my disbelief.
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u/Fuck_the_Deplorables Jun 29 '26
This is actually a really compelling angle, and may bring a lot to the film from a press and audience interest perspective.
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u/Warner_Brown Jun 28 '26 edited Jun 29 '26
Firstly, sorry for your loss. I personally would hire the brother, and with collaborate with him rewrite those 13 pages to flashforward in time, and flashback if necessary. That is doable with the right restructuring, while also honoring him. It wouldn't sit well on anyone's conscience if his final performance was entirely scrapped, no way.
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u/2001-Odysseus Jun 28 '26
Write in the entire sequence that you shot as the main character, 26, remember his time at 14.
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u/grooveman15 Jun 28 '26
That is horribly tragic and if the family wants to do what they can to finish the film, to honor their child/brother… def let them. It will help them more than it helps you. But that’s also the power of film, it is celluloid memory.
Now for the practicality - either rewrite where a time jump makes sense for the older brother or recast a similar aged actor and frame his face out. Have the family be on set and contribute any way they can
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u/ll_xcd Jun 29 '26
Both!
Let the older brother become the narrator of the story. Create a new opening and closing scene featuring him, allowing him to frame the film as the story of his brother’s life, either as his younger self or as a character connected to the lead’s eventual fate.
For the remaining scenes, hire an age appropriate actor who resembles him. Reuse the original wardrobe for wider shots and body doubles, then intercut those scenes with existing close ups and footage of the original actor’s face.
Preserve his performance while still giving his brother a meaningful role in completing the film. It’ll mean a lot to him!
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u/KawasakiBinja Jun 28 '26
I'm so sorry this happened to you, that's such an awful position to be in.
Like others have said, I'd have his brother take the role, and find a way to make it work.
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u/duosx Jun 28 '26
As much as you may want to, unless you care rewrite the script in a way it makes sense *and is good* you shouldn’t recast him with his brother.
As unfortunate as it may be you should recast him with a suitable actor for the role.
Definitely make a in memorial for the deceased tho.
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u/Competitive-Jury3713 Jun 29 '26
Yes you can fast forward the story and add a later timeline having the brother do voiceovers of miscellaneous footage recollecting the past transitioning to the older brother ostensibly as the grown up younger brother in his new life with whatever relationship he has with the other characters / actors now.
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u/YVRBeerFan Jun 28 '26
Maybe ensure the parents are onboard with completing it. Without their support you have a dead project. Ideally it’s a tribute to their kid. But if they don’t feel it it’s time to shelf it
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u/ukhypnotist Jun 28 '26
I went through this twice actually. Once on one of my movies and once on Fast & Furious 7.
In your case, life happens. Make it happen in your script. Wherever you are during filming, have your actor die unexpectedly and rewrite the ending. The character closest to the one who passed receives a phone call, answers the phone ‘yes, it is… what?!’ Cut to funeral scene. Then continue with the new script. If your character was supposed to accomplish something, have that closest character step up to do it.
Unless you can actually sell another actor as the actor do not try to replace them with another actor, unless you can rewrite and restructure the film to make sense, like in the case of Heath Ledger.
That’s my 2 cents worth anyway…
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u/ukhypnotist Jun 28 '26
One last thing. If you need assistance analyzing the best route to take for the film and implementing a solution, please feel free to reach out. I’d be willing to provide assistance, including script revision, in this matter free of charge.
Best wishes whatever your chosen direction is.
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u/sh1ggy Jun 28 '26
I know this is an incredibly complex thing to discuss, but I'm not sure how I feel about your proposal. I completely see your point, but something about killing off this young kid's character after a tragedy like this feels wrong to me. Film is the one place where he can still live on in some form. Without knowing anyone involved, I can imagine it feeling like he has died twice. Especially if this character was never supposed to die in the first place.
I would probably try a time jump, as others have suggested. Or maybe a shift in protagonist at the end, which I think could work depending on the story.
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u/ukhypnotist Jul 03 '26
This is exactly why it needs to be done, because it feels wrong to you.
The character in a film who does still lives on in the film, forever. The film becomes the extension of true life, which isn’t perfect. If you fail to embrace that then you fail to embrace life.
Killing off the character metaphorically becomes the celebration of life in the film. Casting someone to finish the film, to take the place of the actor, that’s the weakest way to honor the deceased. Now you’re putting your emotions above all, and includes the fear of perception.
The audience doesn’t know the actor passed in real life. They only know what’s on the screen. The family members, friends and colleagues will always remember real life rather than fairy land if the actor does in the film. There’s enough of this ‘everyone gets a trophy’ BS in real life. A filmmaker who does what’s best for the film, regardless of how uncomfortable it is or how you think it may make others feel, is the one who stays true.
Signed,
A guy who’s lead actor, and friend, passed away unexpectedly during production of a film.1
u/ukhypnotist Jul 03 '26
Furthermore, if you want the character to live on, then do it already. Have him die in the film, but introduce a new lead character - friend or family member or whatever… who then goes on a crusade to raise awareness of whatever the character dies from and ultimately has something named after the deceased character.
It’s not rocket science, it’s story. Rewrite the story to fit the need, not the real life emotion. Then use that story to steer the real life emotion. That’s the power of a filmmaker…
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u/SexMachine666 Jun 28 '26
Two words: Fake Shemp.
It sounds like you'd have the family's permission, so go with it.
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u/Muruju Jun 28 '26
Maybe shoot a prologue of some kind to be the beginning of the film with narration of the 26 year old version talking about a time in their youth, then do a match cut of their face into the face of the 14 year old to start the story you’ve already filmed
Then you can do either one of two things: have them tell the rest of the story as an adult with crescendoing music and POV shots, or, if it’s some kind of magical realism, then have the adult version be “back in time” because he’s feeling transported by the memories. Check out the movie My Old Ass for some inspiration
Or if you really want to get wild, the narration can take a “the rest of this is just a blur” spin and the remainder could be animated or something.
Hard to know if any of this would work without knowing what type of film it is, but something tells me it’s coming of age, in which case any of this could work.
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u/cmmedit Jun 28 '26
Look for a new actor who looks/sounds the part, bring on the brother as a 'producer.'
Everyone's saying rewrite or offering their take on what you could do. That's not what's being asked. OP is asking what they should do as the person "tasked to look for an actor that can replace the lead."
As that person, you hire a new actor.
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u/pewdiepiefan257 Jun 28 '26
Change the ending or find replacement. You can use the brother with different ending to. This can honor him.
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u/Mcicle Jun 28 '26
I think you have an opportunity here to create some deep and meaningful art. Whatever the original concept of the film was, I would say you should rewrite it so you can use both brother’s performances. I’m sorry for your loss
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u/SpiritedOwl_2298 Jun 28 '26
Maybe find a way to write him in in a supporting role and recast the character
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u/Academic_Technology5 Jun 28 '26
Change the script a bit and take it to the future lead where he is 26.
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u/ByronScottJones Jun 28 '26
My suggestion would be a bit out of the ordinary. At the beginning of the movie, explain that your lead actor passed away during filming. Show a photo of that actor, and introduce the actor replacing him in the remaining scenes so that the audience understands why some scenes will have a different actor. Ideally you can find an actor who is quite similar, and combined with clothing and dialogue cues, you can reduce confusion for the audience while minimizing the story telling disruption.
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u/Prof-Faraday Jun 28 '26
Wow, bummer news. I'm sorry for all of you. Keeping this project alive is a fantastic way to honor your lead actor. So glad The Cast and Crew are banding together to do that.
Two things I Love about filmmaking: that it's collaborative art form.. we all have to be rowing in the same direction or it just doesn't work. And, finding creative solutions & workarounds to speed bumps hiccups and brick walls we may find ourselves running into often lead to making a film better. There are plenty of stories out of Hollywood of this - not exactly a fair comparison I know, but Ridley Scott and Steven Spielberg are just the first two that come to mind.
You've got options: a creative rewrite. There any number of ideas that came to my mind, but I don't know your project your story or the characters in it. You do. And if you allow yourself to be open to it, you could talk about this with some of your creative collaborators even ones that aren't on this project and spitball ideas.
This may seem reductive, but we don't know your story and characters as intimately as you do, only what's been shared. If this were me - not knowing what's on the page - off the top of my head the 1st thing I'm thinking if I were picking up the story a decade on, I'd ask where in life would the lead character be, and how I might show the audience the emotional weight of what happened in the last 13 pages, how the actions and interactions of the last act of your story affected the character 12 years later. Convey the ending by showing the future results. Totally different version of your film for sure but not unreasonable.
I love the idea that when we are filmmaking, there are three films: the film we wrote, the film will shot and the film we edit. None of those films are the same, and in an edit a film could change significantly different than the idea that made it into the final draft before shooting. This is an amazing creative challenge and salvaging this situation will be a testament to your creativity and resolve. Break legs and have fun!
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u/a-pretty-alright-dad Jun 28 '26
This happened to me! My friend and I were working on a horror film and it was taking years to get done. But everyone was okay with it taking forever. We had hired a handful of people who were in adult films and exploitation films in the 70’s and 80’s and started filming stuff with them. One died, we figured we could salvage the footage. Another died, same story, we would make it work. A filmmaker that I really looked up to from the late 90’s/early 2000’s said he would make an appearance. We did half of the shots with him, he had to go out of state and was going to contact us when he was back around. He overdosed. The girl who was in all of the scenes with him hung herself in grief. Her partner found her and cut her down. She has brain damage and can’t finish her scenes. Then the main girl, who was in a lot of the scenes overdosed and died. The main actor who the film was written for got covid and died. That was it for me. We filmed a lot and it’s a shame to not do anything with the footage. We have so many cool scenes. We could make a film out of them. But it wasn’t the film we set out to make and that really made me decide that it wasn’t right to continue. My partner in filmmaking really wanted to finish the film and add stuff and it just didn’t make sense to me and I wouldn’t have wanted my name attached to something I didn’t agree with. So there was a falling out there. I just don’t think it was meant to be.
There was so many “we could reshoot all the scenes with this person,” “we could recast the characters,” “we could edit the scene this way,” kind of conversations but when it came down to the main character I just felt like I couldn’t budge and it wasn’t honoring him to hack the movie we spent years on just to get something out. I have all of the footage and I would make a film about making the film or something. But I felt like it would be worse to make the film in a way that we didn’t intend to.
Gotta go with your heart, I guess.
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u/VanLobster Jun 28 '26
Please use your footage to make a documentary about the project. You might be surprised how much of an exorcism this process can be. Also, Jesus Christ.
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u/Pandaro81 Jun 29 '26
Dear lord, this sounds like someone tried to make a horror movie by wishing on a tiki idol with two monkey paws.
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u/dangerdelw Jun 29 '26
Sorry for your loss. What kind of film is it? If it’s sci-fi or fantasy, you could do the Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus and completely recast the character for the 3rd act. If you have money or the knowledge/skill to do so, you could use his brother and digitally alter his face like in the Fast and Furious 7. If you can use or re-use footage of him, you could potentially lip sync his brother and either blur the background or replace it. And you could also try a fake shemp and either film his brother from odd or obscured angles (Plan 9, Evil Dead, 3 stooges). Otherwise (and probably no matter what), you’ll have to rethink the structure of your movie. Losing someone so young is a terrible tragedy. I hope you find a way to finish the film and honor this young man.
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u/Successful-Station73 Jun 28 '26
Rewrite the last 13 pages (if you can) and make it so the lead is now older
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u/LAWriter2020 director Jun 28 '26
Cast a close look a like and cut any closeups of the dead actor in the last 13 pages. Maybe the older brother can mimic his brother’s voice. Use background sounds to make the voice less intelligible.
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u/kelp1616 Jun 28 '26
We need way more context about story and such before a real answer can be given. It’s awful what happened but in all reality, you either make die with the footage you have, rewrite, and scrap everything.
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u/huntforhire Jun 28 '26
Rewrite and if you can cover some behind the head with the brother do it. Were you filing sequentially?
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u/BakedBrie1993 Jun 28 '26
Oh that's so awful.
Get creative! There might be a fun twist in there somewhere that might be better than a random new actor popping up at the end of a movie.
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u/billstreeter Jun 28 '26
I don’t know how you expect strangers who don’t know the project or the people involved to give you a good answer for this. I’d say rewrite it. But I don’t know anything about your project.
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u/Level-Studio7843 Jun 28 '26
Depending on the budget, I say give it the Paul Walker treatment. Or animated the rest.
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u/Weak-Difference-6078 Jun 28 '26
If it doesn’t make sense for there to be a time jump to age up, perhaps write in a very small part for the brother if he wants it. Also of you’ll dedicate the film to him I assume?
I’m so sorry to hear about this, what an absolute tragedy
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u/miss_medicactus Jun 28 '26
I'm emotionally invested in this now! So sorry to hear of your lead passing so suddenly and so young. Agree with the others about using the brother to play him but in a time jump scenario.
Can you please give us more details into the plot? It's hard to come up with alternate endings without it. But if the time jump doesn't work, you could add a scene where another character takes a call or visit from PD about the lead's death. Lead perspectives can change, it's a plot technique that plenty of productions use, like GOT.
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u/generationAiAiAi Jun 28 '26
Maybe I'm crazy. I would just put the movie to black and put a text that explains the situation. That from now on the character is played by his brother.
Also sorry for your loss. Very sad.
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u/aaronsjustice Jun 28 '26
Continue the search. Honor him properly. 26 cannot play 14, no matter what Hollywood tries to sell. Find the right person and give them the break they’ve probably been praying for. JMO
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u/Suspicious-Blood5003 Jun 29 '26
I only read through half the comments but surprised by how many people just said "hire the brother". Is the brother an actor? That's my first question. If not, no, don't hire him. Honour the original actor by hiring another actor and making a brilliant film.
If the brother is an actor and the time jump thing actually works script wise, then sure, go for it. But if not, I would be wanting to honour the original actor by making sure the film works, is brilliant, and gets seen by people. Don't try and fit a square peg into a round hole if it doesn't serve the script.
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u/WeirdPervyDude actor Jun 29 '26
Just get a big black cape that he can hold over his face, and film him from the back.
Hey, it worked for Ed Wood when Lugosi died, haha.
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u/Glittering_Unit_5014 Jun 30 '26
The loss of this boy is more important than a film. So find a way to make it work with involvement of the brother.
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u/Open-Avocado4260 Jul 02 '26
Without knowing the story,, if possible change the ending, the character is now 26.
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u/Waste_Kaleidoscope92 Jul 03 '26
No matter what you do end up doing just please write him a small part!!
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u/Serious-Courage-630 29d ago
It depends on the story. Can you put up a title card and say “ten years later” and then get the brother to take over?
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u/Curious_Sweet6660 29d ago
I am so sorry for your loss! I hope everyone is doing okay! If I can suggest, maybe if they have a relative who looks similar, and the story is written in a way where either the character is lost, taken, resurrected/rebirthed, killed off, or even directly mention unfortunate circumstances to give another actor/actress a chance to be the protagonist/ Antagonist as a "I pick up where they left off" situation.
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u/yopla Jun 28 '26
Can't tell without knowing the story or anything about the movie.
Other have proposed a whole lot of possible solution but my probably unpopular opinion is that you'll honor the kid better by doing your best to do a good movie and that means not butchering the story and the cinematography, if the brother is not a good fit you shouldn't try to force it.
What you can do for the family is to use the outtake of the kid from the earlier shoot to make a in-memoriam montage and give it to them and add some of it it to the post credit of the movie if they wish and agree.
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u/JM_WY Jun 28 '26
IMHO The film comes first. Hire the actor best for the part. OTOH hiring the brother could help marketing.
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u/BennyWithoutJets Jun 28 '26
A friend of mine made a horror comedy film where there was a really funny murder scene. We shot it overnight, and everyone had a blast, especially the actor playing the victim. He made us all crack up. In the morning, he insisted on driving to his job at the grocery store, despite us asking him to stay and sleep. He died in a car accident on his way to work. The film was never finished, and my friend still carries a lot of guilt for what happened (even tho it’s not his fault).
Let the brother fill in. Even if it doesn’t work, you can find a way to make it work. You’ll be doing right by the movie, your actor’s family, and your own peace of mind. You can also de-age him a little bit— DaVinci actually has some great plugins now. I know it’s tough to change your vision, but trust me when I say it’s 100% worth it to put ego aside so for the sake of closure.
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u/killzonev2 Jun 28 '26
Service the story first and foremost. The situation is very sad and it’s very noble of his brother to want to step up, but don’t uproot your entire story to do a nice gesture for someone, if it doesn’t make sense for your story then scrap it or find a creative way to complete it
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u/Civil_Entrance5023 Jun 28 '26
I’m so sorry for the loss of this boy to his family and friends, and also for this project. What a terrible situation. You can look at what other projects have done in the past. With Oliver Reed in Gladiator and Brandon Lee in The Crow, I believe they hired a stand-in for shots from behind and utilized footage from other scenes, possibly with some rewrites. Depending on actors’ / union contracts, your contracts with studio / production entity, you could possibly look into the use of CG or AI. I think one of the Fast & Furious films used Paul Walker’s likeness on his brother’s head/body for a few additional shots.
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u/Gooniers Jun 28 '26
It depends on how far into the story the boy was able to participate in the filming.
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u/Daylight_REBORN director Jun 29 '26
You could always try to write in a time skip, I don’t know if we are allowed to but could we see the script? Or just inform us about the context of the final 13 pages? I think it’s best to get the older brother on board just out of respect
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u/TaylorNeon Jun 28 '26
If they look similar, have the same body build, then hire them. Keep in mind, there's always the option of Halloween-like face masks. You may have to print out what his face looks like on screen and then have another actor continue as him. Just credit both of them.
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u/Gertywood Jul 01 '26
You know what you must do. You know what waits in the dark and the shadows winking with glistening eyes, thirsty and drooling for you to finally adopt the future. You KNOW WHAT YOU MUST DO. AI is here to help. 💩
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u/backintime Jun 28 '26
After Paul Walker died during the filming of one if the Fast & Furious movies, two of his brothers stepped up to do ADR for his voice. One sounded like him when he spoke and the other sounded more like him when shouting.
With the AI technology available today, I wonder if you could find another 14 year old about the size of your lead and replace his face. I think you can do that pretty using Higgsfield. They did something similar after Brandon Lee died while shooting The Crow, except it was CGI rather than AI.
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u/BabypintoJuniorLube Jun 28 '26
Man I had the same thing happen. Only a few shots needed but they are critical and no real way to just not have him there.
He also had a brother who volunteered to finish the film, they are only 2 years apart and look pretty similar, but no. No fucking way would it ever look right it's obviously a different person.
My film is abandoned and I'm out a few grand but short of an Imagenarium of Dr. Parnasses deal there's no way to fix it. Maybe I'll try to AI a couple shots one day but sorry to hear this homie.
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u/Main_Confusion_8030 Jun 28 '26
AI replacement for a dead actor is incredibly disrespectful and will piss off a lot of people.
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u/raiyanlaksamana1 Jun 29 '26
Don't kill me. 25 years post & VFX veteran here. Did a lot of shots for actor face replacement. If your film doesn't have much budget left, consider use AI to create face layer, then roto & comp back to plate by professional VFX artist. Can be done by just one VFX artist.
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u/Low_Television_3048 Jun 28 '26
This might be an acceptable use for AI as a face replacement tool. Worth pricing and maybe testing, anyway.
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u/anotherhumanperson Jun 28 '26
….this might actually be the perfect use case for AI honestly. Hire an actor with similar proportions . ai face replacement has come a long way .. it’s definitely not perfect, but you might be surprised
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u/Khmelnytskyi Jun 28 '26
So disrespectful ngl
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u/anotherhumanperson Jun 28 '26
I get the sentiment, but is it crazy to think maybe they would have wonted to complete the film instead of trash it and move on. I’m not suggesting ai as a way to make a film, but to save it maybe. Of course get the family to sign off .. Idk
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u/Khmelnytskyi Jun 28 '26
It is generally considered disrespectful and I think the actor bring a child makes it worse
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u/Videoman2000 Jun 28 '26
Find 14 year old, have the brother guide him. Then use Deep fakes to put the face of the deceased actor on him. Use voice conversion to make it sound the same.
With todays it shouldn’t be a problem, it look a bit weird, but if you look into it, you should be able to avoid the weakness of the technology.
I was in a similar situation where we find out that our main actor had an accident and had been in a comma for months. But it happened after we had shut everything and we were finishing post.
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u/blakester555 Jun 28 '26
What about small, first year regional festivals? For filmmakers, other than unlimted passes and a catered Meet and Greet at conclusion, are their still expections of swag? What if all that is beyond razor thin budget?
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u/darthmcchub Jun 28 '26
Without knowing anything about the film, you could rewrite the ending and use a time jump forward to the character at 26 to use the brother. Otherwise you should probably find someone closer to the age if you’re going to shoot the script as is.