{"slug": "neill-blomkamps-new-horror-clip-is-entirely-ai-generated-sucks", "title": "Neill Blomkamp’s New Horror Clip Is Entirely AI-Generated, Sucks", "summary": "Director Neill Blomkamp released his first 'full test AI film' on X on July 19, a horror clip generated entirely with Seedance 2.0, and critics say it fails artistically. The clip depicts a U.S. soldier turned into a zombie soldier via Project Nightborne, but reviewers describe it as antiseptic and emotionally hollow, with relentless dialogue and no advancement in AI-generated acting quality.", "body_md": "No one has been more patient with director Neill Blomkamp than me. Not only do I love *District 9.* I love *Chappie*, and will defend it to the bitter end (Admit you haven’t seen it, and you only know the [famous tweet](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:ywpoqcnhteapetzup7smgt6f/bafkreibs3xgwyupade3sqonsyv3bpwmh5o5yrnzt6kgpzi7xlhryc3g4dy)). I thought *Elysium* was a flawed success. I showed kindness to *Gran Turismo *by, um, not watching it. That way I can pretend forever that it might be good.\n\nBut this? This is unforgivable:\n\nBlomkamp generated this… whatever it is, and [posted a link to it on X](https://x.com/NeillBlomkamp/status/2079078300660769193) on July 19. He calls it his first “full test AI film,” and says it was made with Seedance 2.0. He also says he would like to “tackle a full feature in this format,” apparently through a new enterprise called Barley Studios.\n\nIn the clip, a member of the U.S. military is rendered comatose after her helicopter is shot down, and she is turned into a zombie soldier via some kind of black op called Project Nightborne.\n\nFor better or worse, people do sometimes figure out how to make [arresting and shocking AI video](https://x.com/the_voidstomper/status/2077839393667289426). I’m not sure there’s any redeeming artistic value to any of it yet, but I remain open to the possibility.\n\nBut Blomkamp’s clip barely deserves to be dissected. The only thing that sets it apart creatively from other generic AI videos online is that it’s long. But apparently Blomkamp got so lost in the fact that his outputs were looking *more or less *like real footage from an 8K movie camera at first glance, and that they perform the basic beats of storytelling, that he got to the end, and didn’t notice, or care, how antiseptic it all feels.\n\nThe viewer feels absolutely nothing watching this, other than the occasional annoyance at the typically relentless, [ratatat-tat dialogue delivery](https://youtu.be/8Wbtt2JxP7g?t=403). It’s a reminder that the quality of the “acting” in these clips [hasn’t advanced in almost a year](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaiecWzeHFM).\n\nIt’s an absolute disgrace on every level.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/neill-blomkamps-new-horror-clip-is-entirely-ai-generated-sucks", "canonical_source": "https://gizmodo.com/neill-blomkamps-new-horror-clip-is-entirely-ai-generated-sucks-2000788103", "published_at": "2026-07-21 04:22:23+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-07-21 04:32:00.580095+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["generative-ai", "ai-tools"], "entities": ["Neill Blomkamp", "Seedance 2.0", "Barley Studios", "Project Nightborne"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/neill-blomkamps-new-horror-clip-is-entirely-ai-generated-sucks", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/neill-blomkamps-new-horror-clip-is-entirely-ai-generated-sucks.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/neill-blomkamps-new-horror-clip-is-entirely-ai-generated-sucks.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/neill-blomkamps-new-horror-clip-is-entirely-ai-generated-sucks.jsonld"}}