Andrew Garfield is taking on the role of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in Artificial, with NEON releasing the first teaser for Luca Guadagnino’s upcoming drama on September 8, 2026. The film follows the people and tensions behind OpenAI, building toward the five-day leadership crisis in November 2023 when Altman was abruptly removed as CEO and returned to the company days later.
The first footage shows Garfield alongside Yura Borisov, who plays OpenAI co-founder and former chief scientist Ilya Sutskever. Artificial will make its world premiere at the New York Film Festival in October before beginning its theatrical rollout on Christmas Day.
Artificial teaser brings OpenAI drama to the screen
The teaser introduces Garfield’s version of Altman as the film moves through the development of artificial intelligence and the disagreements surrounding its future. Borisov’s Sutskever emerges as another central figure in the story.
The film reaches further back than OpenAI’s 2023 boardroom crisis. Its story begins in 2003, when Sutskever was studying artificial neural networks at the University of Toronto under computer scientist Geoffrey Hinton, played by Mark Rylance.
About a decade later, Sutskever crosses paths with a young Altman, setting up a story that eventually moves toward OpenAI and the events that brought its leadership into global headlines.
On November 17, 2023, OpenAI announced Altman’s removal after its board said he had not been consistently candid in his communications with directors. Mira Murati, then the company’s chief technology officer, was initially named interim CEO.
The decision triggered several days of turmoil involving OpenAI’s leadership, employees and investors. An agreement was eventually reached for Altman to return as CEO with changes to the board.
Andrew Garfield leads a star-packed Artificial cast
Garfield leads the cast as Altman, while Borisov portrays Sutskever. Monica Barbaro plays Mira Murati and Ike Barinholtz appears as Elon Musk, who was among OpenAI’s original co-founders.
Mark Rylance takes on the role of Geoffrey Hinton. Cooper Hoffman, Jason Schwartzman, Chris O’Dowd, Zosia Mamet, Cooper Koch and Billie Lourd are also among the ensemble cast.
Garfield has said he had not personally met Altman before playing him. The actor instead relied on the screenplay, interviews, court transcripts and other research while developing his portrayal.
The role also brings Garfield back into the world of Silicon Valley drama 16 years after he played Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin in The Social Network.
The film joins a busy late-2026 theatrical calendar that also includes Tom Cruise’s upcoming film Digger, another star-led release drawing attention ahead of awards season.
Luca Guadagnino directs Artificial
Guadagnino directs the film from a screenplay by Simon Rich, whose credits include Saturday Night Live, Man Seeking Woman and Miracle Workers.
Guadagnino, Rich, David Heyman, Jeffrey Clifford and Jennifer Fox are among the producers. Damon Albarn wrote the film’s original score and songs.
Artificial arrives during an active period for major movie announcements, with projects including The Inbetweeners 3 bringing its original cast back together as studios build their upcoming film slates.
Artificial moved from Amazon MGM to NEON
Artificial also changed distributors before its release. Amazon MGM Studios had originally backed the project but decided in 2026 that the film would be better served by another studio.
The move attracted attention because Amazon had separately announced a major relationship with OpenAI. Amazon did not publicly establish that the OpenAI agreement was the reason for its decision to part with the film.
NEON subsequently acquired worldwide theatrical distribution rights in June, putting Artificial on its awards-season slate.
Artificial release date and New York Film Festival premiere
Artificial will make its world premiere at the 64th New York Film Festival on October 5, 2026 at 5 p.m. According to the official New York Film Festival listing, the film has a runtime of 140 minutes, with Guadagnino and cast members scheduled to attend the premiere.
The film is also due to screen at the BFI London Film Festival in October.
NEON will release Artificial in select U.S. theaters on December 25, 2026, followed by a wider theatrical rollout in January 2027. An exact date for the wider January release has not yet been announced.
Make Swikblog your go-to source on Google for reliable updates, smart insights, and daily trends.
