With the advancement of technology, the art of filmmaking grew and explored things that were unachievable before. With CGI technology, films have shown the impossible on the screen. Big budgeted blockbusters are now shot in a room and finally created on the editing desk. Hollywood has created dinosaurs, aliens, robots through CGI but they did not stop there. The industry has brought back to life a few actors through CGI. Here is the list of actors that were brought back to life by CGI.
Marlon Brando
In 1978, Marlon Brando played the role of Jor-El. His acting made a huge impact on the filmmakers and the fans. The impression was so deep that makers brought him back for the pseudo-sequel in 2006. In the film. Brando appears in the Fortress of Solitude as the conscience of Superman when the hero was looking for his place in the world. This was two years after the death of the actor.
Laurance Oliver
The Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow was the first film to feature an entirely CGI-generated setting. It was a passion project of Kerry Conran and took years to develop. The only name that could be thought of for the film was Dr. Totenkopf. The British actor, Laurance Oliver, appeared in a hologram at the end of the film. It was decades after the death of the actor.
Fred Astaire
A decade after Hollywood last the renowned Fred Astaire, the actor appeared in a Super Bowl XXXI ad. The actor danced in the ad with his partner Ginger Rogers to a vacuum cleaner. Astaire’s daughter gave permission to create the likeness of his to the Dirt Devil. The commercial was widely successful in the start. The viewers were in awe to see the famous hoofer dance again on their screens through CGI.
Paul Walker
The Fast and Furious star, Paul Walker, unfortunately, passed away in the middle of the shooting of Furious 7. Though half of the film was already shot, many crucial scenes were still pending. The film was completed using 350 CGI shots of the actor. The film used a few long-distance shots of the actor’s brothers standing as his double in the scenes to finish the character arc.
Brandon Lee
One of the most horrific on-set deaths in Hollywood has to be that of Brandon Lee. The actor tragically passed away when a prop gun misfired. He was working for the Alex Proyes’ comic adaptation – The Crow. With the permission of the family, the film was completed using a stuntman double as the stand-in for the actor and CGI effects.
Roy Scheider
Known for his roles in movies like The French Connection and Jaws, Roy Scheider died during the shooting of Iron Cross. He passed away due to complications of multiple myeloma. Important scenes of the movie were still left. Joshua Newton, the maker of the film decided to shoot the rest of the scenes using a latex mask and CGI to complete the last project of the actor.
