Emmy nominee set to play Elon Musk in movie portrayal director says the billionaire will 'hate'

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Emmy nominee set to play Elon Musk in movie portrayal director says the billionaire will 'hate'

I can't see this going down well...

Emmy nominee set to play Elon Musk in movie that billionaire is expected to 'hate.'

Hollywood has done an impressive job at bringing important figures and their stories to life on the screen.

It's covered everyone from rock star legends like Freddie Mercury to historical figures like Marie Curie.

But taking on a movie about the world's richest man might just be the peak.

An upcoming film called 'Artificial' is reportedly in development at Amazon MGM Studios. The movie is expected to start shooting later this year with a planned 2026 release.

And if the casting choices are accurate, Elon Musk's character portrayal is not expected to sit well with the Tesla billionaire.

Ike Barinholtz is set to play Elon Musk in the upcoming Artificial movie. (Samuel Corum/Stringer/Getty)
Ike Barinholtz is set to play Elon Musk in the upcoming Artificial movie. (Samuel Corum/Stringer/Getty)

Who is being cast for Artificial?

Drum roll, please...

Emmy-nominated actor Ike Barinholtz, who recently got recognition for his role in The Studio alongside Seth Rogen, is reportedly in talks to play Elon Musk in the film.

But he won't be the only big name tackling a tech mogul.

Andrew Garfield is set to play OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman, while actor Yura Borisov is attached to the role of OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever.

According to Matthew Belloni, an entertainment reporter at Puck who claims to have obtained a copy of the 'Artificial' script, both Musk and Altman will 'probably hate their portrayals.' At one point in the script, the SpaceX founder is allegedly referred to as a 'dictator'.

Ike Barinholtz recently got recognition for his role in The Studio (Robin L Marshall/Stringer/Getty)
Ike Barinholtz recently got recognition for his role in The Studio (Robin L Marshall/Stringer/Getty)

Belloni mentioned that while the script is still a draft and could change before filming, Musk appears in several scenes that serve as both 'villainy and comic relief.'

Other tech billionaires reportedly featured in the script include former OpenAI vice president Dario Amodei (now CEO of Anthropic) and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella.

What is the plot of Artificial?

Few details of the plot have been revealed. However, the film is being described as a comedy-drama focusing on the chaotic few days in November 2023 when Altman was fired and then rehired as OpenAI's CEO.

Musk has a complicated history with OpenAI. He co-founded the company alongside Altman and others in 2015, but left in 2018 reportedly due to disagreements about the company's direction. Since then, he has been vocal about his issues with OpenAI's shift toward a for-profit structure and has repeatedly warned about the potential dangers AI poses to humanity.

Despite his criticisms of OpenAI, Musk has pursued his own AI ventures through Tesla, Neuralink, and xAI - a lab he launched two years ago. His AI chatbot Grok was integrated into X (formerly Twitter) in 2023 and has recently been in the news for its unhinged behaviour.

Featured Image Credit: Steve Granitz / Contributor / Getty