Was AI used to generate Putin’s face for the Polish film? Explained

The Polish filmmaker Patryk Vega's latest project, Putin, was released on January 10, 2025, in the United States. In addition to directing, Vega has also written and produced the biopic. Made on a budget of $15 million, the film will be released in 64 countries, including Germany, Ireland, Turkey, and France, as reported by Notes from Poland.

The biopic marks Vega's foray into English-language cinema. He has previously directed Polish films like Secret Wars, Pitbull, The Plagues of Breslau, Love, S*x & Pandemic, and Invisible War.

The film is centered around the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, and depicts the titular character by using state-of-the-art AI technology, that enabled his face to be superimposed on an actor.

On January 5, 2025, the film's director told The Daily Telegraph that he needed to combine the work of AI with a "real-world reference" to create a compelling portrayal of the world leader.

"Without this real-world reference, AI simply cannot replicate the level of precision we’ve accomplished."

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Director Patryk Vega says, "The audience needed to see the real Putin"

The film's use of cutting-edge AI technology has impressed as well as alarmed the public. In the Telegraph interview, Patryk Vega explained why he could not simply rely on the actor's performance to portray Putin by saying:

"The audience needed to see the real Putin. They see him every day in the media. Even the best actor with great make-up wouldn’t convincingly portray a figure everyone in the world knows so well."

Vega's film, Putin, chronicles the Russian leader's life, starting from his difficult childhood to his rise to power and his recent invasion of Ukraine. It blends fictional accounts with real historical events over the film's runtime of 1 hour and 49 minutes.

The Daily Express reported on January 4, 2025, that the film includes reenactments of events like Moscow's theater hostage crisis of 2002 and the Chechnya campaign under Putin's leadership. It also features real footage of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

Moreover, the Polish actor Slawomir Sobala, who bears a striking resemblance to Putin, plays the political figure in the movie. Sobala reportedly spent two years perfecting the politician's mannerisms and body language for his performance. Putin's face is plastered over Sobala's body to create a realistic image of the Russian leader.

Sobala is joined by Tomasz Dedek, Justyna Karlowska, Thomas Kretschmann, Kalina Wysocka, and Maksymilian Zielinski, among others in the crime thriller.

In the same Telegraph interview, Vega also claimed that his film initially came under the scanner of Russian intelligence agents. He shared that he was offered $200,000 for the script by Russian agents posing as American buyers before he directed them to Agencja Wywiadu, Poland’s intelligence agency similar to the MI6.

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The film grabbed attention for its use of AI technology

The film takes a human-AI hybrid approach to storytelling, which has never been tried before. Its ethical implications on the future of moviemaking is a topic of discussion, with many criticizing the director for using the technology at all.

On a side note, the rising use of AI and deepfake technology in motion pictures was one of the main issues raised during the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes, which lasted from May 2, to November 9, 2023.

During an interview with a Polish newspaper, Gazeta Wyborcza, on January 8, 2025, Vega defended his artistic choice by saying that the story serves a "social interest" and is far too important to be ignored.

"In his case, we are dealing with an important social interest. This man is accused of war crimes. This gives me the green light to make such a film."

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Stay tuned for more updates on the latest movies and television shows of 2025.