Andy Serkis, who first portrayed Gollum in 2001's *The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring*, has pushed back against fears that AI will replace the character in the upcoming film *The Hunt for Gollum*. Serkis acknowledged that AI already produces stunning *Lord of the Rings*-style photos, citing "1000s of images" on TikTok, but argued that what AI lacks is an actor's performance, stating "it’s not authored by a performance." He emphasized that human creativity remains at the heart of storytelling and drama, and that performance capture is "an actor’s authored technology." Serkis noted that while AI may handle "small prompted moments," he does not believe it can produce full-feature emotional depth or replace the "minutiae of actors’ decisions" across a full script. Despite his criticisms, Serkis revealed that AI will be used limitedly in *The Hunt for Gollum* for de-aging effects. The film is set to arrive in cinemas on Dec 17, 2027.