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21 Actors Who Were De-Aged Using Digital Technology To Look Younger On Screen
Every single one of us, including the richest and the most famous Hollywood celebrities, is powerless in the face of time. However, in the era of exponential technological growth, movies and TV shows are able to slightly tame it.
De-aging is a visual effects technique performed using digital editing and CGI, that allows professionals to make actors and actresses look years or even decades younger. The first movie to ever use this technique was 2006's X-Men: The Last Stand, rewinding the clock for Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen. Since then, many others have employed de-aging techniques in their own creations.
Without further ado, Bored Panda invites you to scroll down and take a look at some of the most iconic movie stars that were made to look younger using CGI and digital editing.
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Kurt Russell In 'Guardians Of The Galaxy' (2017)
The traditional way of making actors be a different age on screen was getting creative with makeup, clothes and accessories, using prosthetics, or casting younger actors to play certain characters in flashback scenes. However, the results achieved using these techniques aren't always that amazing.
As we mentioned before, the first ones to employ the de-aging technique in film was the creators of X-Men: The Last Stand, that had scenes taking the narrative back in time.
Samuel L. Jackson In 'Captain Marvel' (2019)
“Like any of the first forays into new effects, these effects by today’s standards seem a bit outdated,” a lead compositor at London-based visual effects house Framestore Owen Braekke-Carroll told Backstage. “But for the time, they were at the top of their game, and also paved the way for the method and ideas we use regularly today. Seeing them on the screen like that—I immediately thought that if this was possible, it would be used widely to let the filmmakers add or extend the story beyond the time audiences were used to.”
Robert Downey Jr. In 'Captain America: Civil War' (2016)
Anthony Hopkins In 'Westworld' (2016-Present)
“De-ageing is quite a bit more complex now,” Braekke-Carroll shared with Backstage. “There are even a few different approaches depending on the desired outcome. For smaller and more subtle effects, a digital touch-up or ‘airbrush’ isn’t out of the question. But for the full-screen, full-performance-type effect, it’s usually more of a total digital rebuild of the face and head—often using a stand-in body double of similar proportion and build to the original actor.”
Stan Lee In 'Avengers: Endgame' (2019)
Michael Douglas In 'Ant-Man And The Wasp' (2018)
Mark Hamill In 'The Mandalorian' (2019-Present)
Of course, people have all kinds of opinions about digital de-aging. "My problem with de-aging that the actors still move like an old person," someone pointed out under the YouTube video called De-Aging Will Change Movies Forever. "Young Sam Jackson also walks and moves like an old man. You can't de-age posture," another user added.
"This, combined with deepfakes and voice modulation. We'll only need ONE actor in the future to play EVERY role!" someone pointed out.
Michelle Pfeiffer In 'Ant-Man And The Wasp' (2018)
Clark Gregg In 'Captain Marvel' (2019)
Patrick Stewart In 'X-Men: The Last Stand' (2006)
A few users pointed out how de-aging technology may prevent newly-baked actors from getting their shot in the movie industry. "I think it just makes actors obsolete. Why hire newbies when you have thousands of hours of great actors already acting? Just use that and make a new movie! Cheaper! Terrifying......" someone commented.
Will Smith In 'Gemini Man' (2019)
Ian Mckellen In 'X-Men: The Last Stand' (2006)
Carrie Fisher In 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story' (2016)
Robert De Niro In 'Irishman' (2019)
Jennifer Connelly In 'American Pastoral' (2016)
Brad Pitt In 'The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button' (2008)
Joe Pesci In 'Irishman' (2019)
Paul Reubens In 'Pee Wee's Big Holiday' (2016)
Dwayne Johnson In 'Central Intelligence' (2016)
Johnny Depp In 'Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales' (2015)
He looks like a Johnny Depp impersonator, and not even a good one. He doesn't even look like himself
I didn't think it was too bad until he spoke, that made it terrible lol
No, just no. There are so many early Johnny Depp movies to use as models. Why make him look like as far from Johnny Depp as possible?
How did they not look at Jumpstreet at all?! Where are his magnificent cheek bones?!
Why in the name of all that is holy would you de-age Depp? Firstly, he NEVER looked like that unless maybe when he was 12. Secondly, he has not aged enough to have to worry about it.
They had to because in this scene of the movie Jack Sparrow was a teenager/young man.
Load More Replies...I think they used another actor, not necessarily de-aged Johnny.
watched the film 3 days ago - thought it was badly chosen young actor
Yes, it is not well done. Looks like the blue filter feature. C'mon, techies.
They used a body double for the younger body movements, and skin, but the performance was 100% Depp. It is his face, but the skin and various other body parts were taken from the double
Load More Replies...Jeff Bridges In 'Tron: Legacy' (2010)
It gets scarier. They are closing in on the point where they can create algorithms that can mimic how an actor/actress actually acts... Meaning they can bring an actor "back from the dead" for a part and put him in a part and the result would be indistinguishable from a live actor. Am wondering when they'll learn that it's cheaper to use deceased actors and we get a new sitcom staring John Belushi and Robin Williams.
I don’t know, I mean the youngified cgi is mostly okay, but they still all look really off when they speak, or move. Also a lot of estates of these actors actually require payment for people to use the deceased’s likeness, so I’m not sure it WOULD be cheaper. Plus you’re forgetting how many people would start finding it really creepy to have new movies starring people who died forever ago.
Load More Replies...Given how much film they have of these people when younger ----- they better look realistically like their younger selves. (Depp excepted, as that one seems a bit botched, IMO.) Oh well. Soon we'll just have CGI anyway.
This made no sense. The tilte, "21 Movie Ant TV Show Actors Who Were Digitally De-Aged" made no sense at all, so I clicked to see what it was. Is it someone who used photoshop to make actors looks younger? Or... fatter? Ooooookay. Very strange.
It's basically just a collection of movies that showed the advancing technologies for special effects. They're not originally pictures, they're movie scenes. It's impressive, or arguably scary. It's cool for entertainment, but it could be used for other purposes too.
Load More Replies...*eyeroll* it's not about something wrong with aging and wrinkles, it's because it doesn't fit the timeline. Many of these shots are from flashbacks, or time travel or something like that. And it wouldn't make sense if they were old and wrinkly if it was 20 years ago etc.
Load More Replies...It gets scarier. They are closing in on the point where they can create algorithms that can mimic how an actor/actress actually acts... Meaning they can bring an actor "back from the dead" for a part and put him in a part and the result would be indistinguishable from a live actor. Am wondering when they'll learn that it's cheaper to use deceased actors and we get a new sitcom staring John Belushi and Robin Williams.
I don’t know, I mean the youngified cgi is mostly okay, but they still all look really off when they speak, or move. Also a lot of estates of these actors actually require payment for people to use the deceased’s likeness, so I’m not sure it WOULD be cheaper. Plus you’re forgetting how many people would start finding it really creepy to have new movies starring people who died forever ago.
Load More Replies...Given how much film they have of these people when younger ----- they better look realistically like their younger selves. (Depp excepted, as that one seems a bit botched, IMO.) Oh well. Soon we'll just have CGI anyway.
This made no sense. The tilte, "21 Movie Ant TV Show Actors Who Were Digitally De-Aged" made no sense at all, so I clicked to see what it was. Is it someone who used photoshop to make actors looks younger? Or... fatter? Ooooookay. Very strange.
It's basically just a collection of movies that showed the advancing technologies for special effects. They're not originally pictures, they're movie scenes. It's impressive, or arguably scary. It's cool for entertainment, but it could be used for other purposes too.
Load More Replies...*eyeroll* it's not about something wrong with aging and wrinkles, it's because it doesn't fit the timeline. Many of these shots are from flashbacks, or time travel or something like that. And it wouldn't make sense if they were old and wrinkly if it was 20 years ago etc.
Load More Replies...