Amazon Ceases Collaboration with Sam Altman Film Following OpenAI Partnership Announcement

Amazon has decided to drop Luca Guadagnino’s biopic about OpenAI founder Sam Altman, titled “Artificial,” from their roster. The film, starring Andrew Garfield as Altman, was set for release in early 2027 but is now in limbo. This decision comes after Amazon expanded its deal with OpenAI, investing $50 billion in the AI company and agreeing to run its systems on Amazon’s cloud services.

A spokesperson for Amazon expressed respect for Guadagnino as a filmmaker and stated that they are working to find a new home for the film, believing it would be better served elsewhere. “Artificial” would have been Guadagnino’s third film with Amazon, following the success of “Challengers” and “After the Hunt.”

The movie was set to focus on the period when Altman was removed as CEO of OpenAI in 2023 and later reinstated. Andrew Garfield was set to star alongside Monica Barbaro, Ike Barinholtz, and other talented actors in the film. Despite positive early screenings, Amazon made the decision to drop the project, with concerns about the portrayal of Altman and Elon Musk being notable factors.

Altman and Amazon’s founder Jeff Bezos have a longstanding friendship, with Amazon being one of OpenAI’s first investors in 2015. The companies deepened their partnership with a major deal in November 2025, highlighting the close ties between the two tech giants.

“Artificial” is currently being shopped to other studios in search of a new distributor. Stay tuned for updates on this intriguing project.