MOVIE NEWS – Academy Award-winning actor Adrien Brody, best known for The Pianist, has stepped back into the spotlight with his latest role in Brady Corbet’s historical drama, The Brutalist. The film, which has garnered ten Academy Award nominations, has recently faced backlash over allegations of AI usage in post-production. While some dialogue adjustments were made using AI—specifically for pronunciation refinement—Brody assures that no fundamental changes were made to the dialects.
In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, the actor addressed the controversy head-on, clarifying that AI was only used to tweak a handful of Hungarian lines and that no major alterations were made to the performances. He also defended dialect coach Tanera Marshall, whose work came under scrutiny after the online allegations surfaced:
“First of all, I’m the son of Hungarian parents and grew up hearing the language at home. In fact, I even added Hungarian curse words to the dialogue that weren’t originally in the script. I’m glad Brady was able to clarify much of this in his statements. Obviously, the post-production process fine-tuned a few Hungarian lines, but nothing about the dialect itself was changed. That was all the result of a lot of hard work alongside our fantastic dialect coach, Tanera Marshall. We all put in immense effort, and we know exactly what went into it.”
Brody went on to emphasize that AI was not used to replace human labor, and the refinements made in post-production were standard industry practice.
Director Brady Corbet also weighed in, confirming that AI was employed solely for Hungarian dialogue refinement and had no bearing on the actors’ performances:
“Adrien and Felicity’s performances are entirely their own. They worked extensively with Tanera Marshall for months to perfect their accents. The innovative Respeecher technology was used solely in editing for Hungarian-language dialogue to fine-tune specific vowels and consonants for accuracy. The objective was to maintain the authenticity of Adrien and Felicity’s performances in another language, not to replace or manipulate them in any way. The process was undertaken with the utmost respect for the craft.”
Adrien Brody Drew Inspiration From His Own Family History
In a separate interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Brody spoke about his approach to developing his character’s accent in The Brutalist. Unlike other Oscar nominees who have been criticized for relying on AI-assisted tools, Brody credited his inspiration to real-life experiences.
“I was looking for a source with the speech patterns and formality of that era—the same era in which my grandfather immigrated. I ended up studying a Holocaust survivor’s way of speaking.”
The actor explained that he spent extensive time absorbing the nuances of the survivor’s speech, which reminded him of his own grandfather’s expressions and mannerisms:
“I spent every day and night recounting his stories, listening to the cadence of his voice, the way he always returned to certain expressions. My grandfather’s way of speaking is ingrained in me. It was both an incredible privilege and an opportunity to honor his struggles, as well as those of so many others who endured similar hardships.”
Brody is considered one of the frontrunners for Best Actor at the upcoming Academy Awards, set to take place on March 2. He faces stiff competition from major Hollywood contenders such as Conclave, Wicked, Emilia Pérez, and A Complete Unknown. Recently, Emilia Pérez, which secured 13 nominations, saw its Oscar chances take a hit when controversy erupted over Karla Sofía Gascón’s past. With The Brutalist now facing AI-related scrutiny, only time will tell if it will have any impact on the film’s awards prospects.
Source: MovieWeb
Leave a Reply