Chris Evans, More Stars, Speak Out Against CGI James Dean Movie

James Dean tragically passed away 64 years ago, but that hasn’t stopped him from being cast in an upcoming Vietnam War film, albeit through CGI. The decision hasn’t been well-received and has sparked an online conversation to have the idea completely scrapped.

Several actors, including Chris Evans and Elijah Wood, have been outspoken on the matter, calling it “awful.”

Evans Tweeted out: "This is awful. Maybe we can get a computer to paint us a new Picasso. Or write a couple new John Lennon tunes. The complete lack of understanding here is shameful."

Wood also took to Twitter, expressing his distaste for this decision: "NOPE. this shouldn't be a thing."

While speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, director Anton Ernst went over why they ultimately decided to cast a CGI Dean, stating that they had searched extensively for the right person for the role, but the team ultimately decided that Dean was the only one who could portray the “complex” character.

Among the concerns expressed were ones on how such a performance could possibly be credited.

Actress Julie Ann Emery brought up the point that a motion capture actor would need to provide stand0in and voice patterns, and expressed her frustration of “how little this team understands the acting craft."

Meanwhile, Zelda Williams felt it was a publicity stunt. The daughter of the late comedian and actor Robin Williams called it “puppeteering the dead.” Her father had made sure nothing similar would happen to him, and restricted exploitation and use of his image for 25 years after his death.

Dean was a highly celebrated actor who passed away at age 24. He only had three official film roles to his name during his career, but all of them earned him either a nomination for Academy Awards or BAFTAs.