If you're looking for a half-decent, heartfelt sci-fi romp, you'll probably enjoy The Adam Project, Netflix's latest Ryan Reynolds vehicle. But there's one aspect of the film's visuals that hasn't landed well.
The time-travel film features characters meeting younger and older versions of themselves – which is all well and good when the older version is played by a different actor. But the CGI 'de-agification' of one Catherine Keener has baffled viewers – not to mention creeping them out. Much like the best deepfakes of all time, the uncanny valley is strong with this one.
When Keener's villainous Maya Sorian travels back in time to chew the fat with her younger self, she meets, erm, a disturbingly dead-behind-the-eyes de-aged version of herself. And with so many incredible deepfakes out there these days, Twitter users are wondering why Netflix opted to make Young Maya look like a character from The Polar Express. Or The Sims.
The de-aged/CG/deepfaked/whatever-the-hell-they-did young version of Catherine Keener in THE ADAM PROJECT is freaking uncanny valley pic.twitter.com/qoC1orywmUMarch 11, 2022
Can't get over how badly they botched the deaging of Catherine Keener's character in The Adam Project, she looks like a Sim 😂 #TheAdamProject pic.twitter.com/YyK22hfcrkMarch 11, 2022
The Adam Project is okay, but I will never forgive them for the ghoulish deepfake nightmare they inflicted on Catherine KeenerMarch 13, 2022
Indeed, with examples like the Star Wars deepfake so good it got the creator hired by Lucasfilm and those hilarious Tom Cruise TikTok videos, it's a little baffling that Netflix itself couldn't come up with something a little more realistic. Still, at least Young Maya isn't quite as terrifying as the humans in Gran Turismo 7.
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