A new AP roundup traces AI on screen across two generations, selecting 10 films and TV touchpoints as real-world artificial intelligence becomes newly central to daily life.
The survey spans 1968's “2001: A Space Odyssey,” 1984's “The Terminator,” 2008's “WALL-E” and 2021's “The Mitchells vs. the Machines,” showing recurring fears of sentient systems, surveillance and machine control.
Several picks also stress more nuanced uses of AI: “War Games” helped spur early U.S. computer-security guardrails, while “Interstellar” presented TARS as a practical human aid rather than a replacement.
The review argues those stories double as social commentary, from “Simone” anticipating synthetic performers to “Her” and “Ex Machina” probing intimacy, consciousness and the power of tech creators.