'Stop That Train' Director Adam Shankman Denies AI Use After Social-Media Backlash

Director Adam Shankman pushed back on social-media claims that the RuPaul Charles comedy "Stop That Train" relied on generative AI, writing on Instagram that "every shot was made by human hands" and that "there are a sum total of ZERO shots conceived by AI in the movie." Shankman also highlighted that hundreds of VFX artists worked on the film and that no human jobs were displaced.

The accusations stemmed partly from the involvement of Acme AI, a VFX firm co-founded by former Relativity Media executive Ryan Kavanaugh. A source familiar with the production told Variety that Acme AI was contracted solely for VFX work and that any AI use was confined to background workflow processes — nothing that appeared on screen. The controversy follows a separate incident in which AI-generated imagery allegedly appeared in an April episode of "RuPaul's Drag Race," which had already inflamed fan sentiment heading into the film's release.