YouTuber Gossip Goblin’s AI Film to Open in U.S. and U.K. Theaters, Genies Signs UTA Deal to Create AI Versions of Celebrity Clients, Disney Emerges as Leading Bidder for Character.ai
YouTuber Gossip Goblin’s Gods Don’t Give Gifts, produced by Edward Saatchi’s Fable, is heading to theaters and an Academy Awards campaign, while Genies and United Talent Agency are bringing AI avatars to celebrity fan engagement. Disney is also moving to acquire assets from bankrupt AI chatbot company Character.ai, positioning itself to expand its AI-driven audience and entertainment strategy. At MIPCOM Cannes, YouTube, streaming services, FAST channels and AI took on a larger role in the international content market, with new programs focused on monetization, digital distribution and AI production. VFX veteran Hong Jae Cheol argued that AI-native studios can develop original intellectual property, even as established studios retain advantages in franchises, talent and distribution. And Fox Nation entered the space with Houdini: Back from the Dead, a three-part AI-generated series about Harry Houdini produced by Red Rock Films.
YouTuber Gossip Goblin’s AI Film to Open in U.S. and U.K. Theaters
YouTuber Gossip Goblin, whose real name is Zack London, will release Gods Don’t Give Gifts, a feature film made entirely with artificial intelligence, in limited U.S. and U.K. theaters on Dec. 4. The film’s trailer will begin screening in theaters Friday, with lobby posters and billboard advertising planned for November. The sci-fi horror film is set in the “Second Cycle of Humanity,” a future in which transhumanism has reshaped humanity. It was previewed at the Venice Film Festival market last month and is produced by Edward Saatchi through Fable, his AI company, whose backers include Amazon. The filmmakers said the release is the first fully AI feature to receive an MPA rating and the first to be campaigned in the Academy Awards’ Best Animated Feature category. Saatchi said the team will screen the film for Academy voters and mount a traditional awards campaign. The release comes as YouTube creators increasingly turn online audiences into theatrical ticket sales, following recent theatrical projects including Obsession, Backrooms and Iron Lung.
Genies Signs UTA Deal to Create AI Versions of Celebrity Clients
AI avatar company Genies has signed an agreement with United Talent Agency that will allow UTA clients to create AI versions of themselves for fan engagement. The deal will let celebrities build digital personas based on their likeness, personality, and experiences to interact with audiences online. UTA’s client roster includes Will Ferrell, Kylie Minogue and Bad Bunny. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Genies founder and Chief Executive Akash Nigam said the company expects AI personalities to become common across entertainment, commerce and customer service. Celebrity clients will retain control over their avatars and can moderate how the digital versions behave online, according to Bloomberg.
Genies has raised $200 million from investors including former Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger and Silver Lake Management. Its earlier partners include Major League Baseball and NBA players, Justin Bieber and Webtoon Entertainment. Nigam said interest in the company increased after September launches of AI agents including Meta’s Muse and OpenAI’s Dots.
Disney Emerges as Leading Bidder for Character.ai Assets in Bankruptcy Sale
Character.ai has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, with Disney positioned as the leading bidder for certain company assets. Disney Worldwide Services is committing $20 million for a non-exclusive perpetual license to selected Character.ai intellectual property and claims.
Character.ai, founded by former Google engineers, allows users to create and interact with AI chatbots and later expanded into AI-generated microdramas. Google is the company’s largest creditor and is owed more than $4 million. Disney hired Character.ai’s former chief executive, Karandeep Anand, as its chief technology officer last month. Some Character.ai employees are expected to join Disney and provide transition services during the sale process.
The bankruptcy auction is expected to conclude in late November or early December. As the stalking-horse bidder, Disney can match competing offers, although it is not guaranteed to win the assets. Character.ai Chief Executive Colin Adams said the court-supervised sale offers the best opportunity to maximize value for stakeholders. If successful, Disney would gain access to Character.ai’s avatar technology as it seeks new forms of audience engagement. Disney previously reached an agreement with OpenAI for Sora video creation, but that arrangement was unwound after OpenAI shut the product down.
MIPCOM Cannes 2026 Expands Streaming, YouTube and Digital Focus
MIPCOM Cannes 2026 will give greater prominence to streaming, FAST channels, YouTube and emerging digital video formats when the international content market returns to the Palais des Festivals from Oct. 12–15. Organizers expect more than 10,000 executives from studios, broadcasters, streaming services, production companies, distributors and technology firms. YouTube is expanding its presence after debuting at MIPCOM in 2025. The platform will host daily workshops and panels on distribution, monetization and digital growth, with more than 10 partners expected to take part.
The MIP Innovation Lab will include a dedicated Streaming & FAST section covering distribution technology, channel creation and streaming businesses, along with sessions on monetization, audience technology, AI and production. New initiatives include MIP BrandWorks, a three-day program connecting brands and agencies with studios, streamers, producers and rights holders, and the MIP AI Entertainment Forum, which will examine AI in content creation, production and licensing.
AI-Native Studios Can Create Original IP Separate from Traditional Studios
While Traditional Studios Retain Advantages, VFX Veteran Says Small AI-native companies using automated production pipelines can develop their own intellectual property, while traditional studios will retain advantages in established franchises, production infrastructure, talent and distribution, according to VFX veteran Hong Jae Cheol.
Hong, a producer-director at Viscode who began his career at Industrial Light & Magic and worked on films including Iron Man, Transformers and Pirates of the Caribbean, made the remarks at the InnoAsia AI Creators Camp during the Busan International Film Festival’s Asian Contents & Film Market. “We are moving from using AI to generate individual images toward using AI as part of a complete production workflow,” he said. Hong argued that AI is changing the production model, but traditional visual effects remain essential to making generated material usable on screen. He described the future as a hybrid partnership between AI and human creativity rather than a wholesale replacement of existing studios. In an AI-assisted process, actors perform on a controlled set, AI generates environments and visual elements, and VFX artists handle tracking, integration and finishing. Hong also outlined current applications across VFX, animation and filmmaking, including rotoscoping, cleanup, previs, character design, camera tests and environment creation.
Mark Wachholz, chief creative director of Berlin-based Dreamkite Studios, described AI co-creation as an invitation to give up some control and allow for surprise. Director Ahn Jaehong of Climax Studio outlined a workflow from prompts and camera information to scene context, shot lists, storyboards, character and prop sheets, locations and keyframes.
Fox Nation to Debut AI-Generated ‘Houdini’ Series
Fox Nation will debut Houdini: Back from the Dead, a three-part AI-generated series about illusionist Harry Houdini, on Oct. 14, ahead of the 100th anniversary of his Oct. 31, 1926, death. The series chronicles Houdini’s life through his own “words,” covering a childhood marked by a violent accident and strained family relationships, as well as his daring performances for audiences. An AI-generated Houdini persona will appear in the style of a documentary subject, answering questions about his life for a camera.
Produced by Red Rock Films, the series was made using more than 400 licensed photographs and archival footage. Human actors served as stand-ins for historical figures, including Houdini’s wife Bess, his mother, brother, and friends, while AI was used to transform them into the characters. Human writers created the scripts using material from diaries, books and letters, with historical points verified by experts and research. The characters’ voices combined human and AI-generated audio.
Houdini: Back from the Dead is the first fully AI-generated project from the larger Fox News banner, placing the company in a sector that most news organizations have avoided. Lauren Petterson, president of Fox Nation, Fox News’ streaming service, said the series represented “new creative ground by using emerging technology to bring one of history’s most fascinating figures to life for a modern audience.” She said the project was rooted in extensive research and historical accuracy.
