From Terminator to M3GHAN: Unraveling A.I.’s Movie Life Lessons

It’s Not Rebellion, It's Complacency

A.I. is everywhere.

True, we might not yet be fully living in “The Matrix,” and the T-1000 terminator models haven't fully rolled off the Skynet production line. But regardless, it does feel like Artificial Intelligence is suddenly on everyone’s minds.

Perhaps it feels this way to me because the use of AI is a central deal point and a particular bone of contention in the WGA-SAG-AFTRA strike that has ground Hollywood to a halt, which, as a writer-producer, impacts me directly. Or perhaps it's the fear of deep fakes in our news media and election cycle. A.I. is here to stay, and the implications of this new technological epoch are on everyone's minds. This is evident from the numerous books and movies in which the “villain” or the disastrous event that catalyzes all subsequent events is A.I.

As a storyteller, I have a special place in my heart for the lessons we can learn from our favorite books, movies, TV shows, comic books, and more. Today, I figured I’d take a look at some movies and a classic comic graphic novel that is a personal favorite of mine to see what life lessons they might have to offer us as we rush headfirst into a world where Artificial Intelligence exists (or does it?).

First things first, let’s reset the table on where our fears and worries should lie. Forget that big ol' scary Terminator, with the red eyes and time travel mumbo-jumbo. It’s not a violent killing AI-powered robot like in “The Terminator” or even the rogue version of the “plaything” MEGHAN doll in the movie. (By the way, SPOILER ALERT: The doll turns bad and kills people). What we ought to really worry about isn't some robot uprising; it's about us – yep, good ol' humanity – handing over the keys to the kingdom without so much as a second thought.

A scary movie like “MEGHAN” is a cautionary tale not about bad programming and murderous A.I., but rather about humans' willingness to let A.I. replace us. That’s where the real trouble begins. And that’s the Movie Life Lesson. Think of Allison Williams's character in the movie, thrust into being a new “mom” who, rather than take responsibility for her niece as her ward, prefers to let an android doll be the parental figure instead. Why? So she can pursue her career, and avoid all the time-consuming, icky parts of parenting.

This theme has been explored before in popular fiction. In Ray Bradbury’s classic short story “The Veldt,” a father and mother allow an A.I.-powered holographic room in their house to entertain and educate their children. In both stories, the plan doesn't work out for the parent. Notably, when the parents in both stories attempt to disconnect or shut down the A.I., they face backlash not from the AI but from other humans. Creepily, in both these examples, it’s the children that first turn vengeful.

But there are more dangerous possibilities we must consider when it comes to ceding power over to machines rather than making use of ourselves as human beings. How can we make sure that we don't lose the spark of humanity—or worse yet, suppress it before it has a chance to grow?

In the classic comic book graphic novel, “X-Men: The Asgardian War,” Alpha Flight and a plane full of scientists crash in a remote region of Canada. To the X-Men’s surprise, all of the normal people there now have super powers, while the members of Alpha Flight find the emotional or physical trauma of their lives is healed. This seems like a utopia – after all, the emotional and physical pain everyone feels is diminished, and everyone has super abilities. Cyclops has control over his optic blasts, and Wolverine no longer experiences "berserker" rage.

But every utopia comes at a price.

The newfound abilities come at the cost of their humanity - something that is not immediately clear when they first arrive on the scene. It isn’t until Kitty Pryde stumbles upon a notebook filled with drawings, that in the early pages contain sketches of magnificent buildings, much like the crystal palace where the story of the graphic novel unfolds. But, by the final pages of the notebook, the drawings are all crude, simple, like stick figures a little kid could do. It’s the absence of the spark of imagination. The artist could no longer conceive of anything new or greater than he had already done. Until eventually, without the fire of creativity, his actual abilities degrade until they are no more.

All of this — the superpowers, the relief from all suffering — is Loki's "gift". Kitty Pryde and the other superheroes quickly realize that Loki's so-called "gift" of extraordinary superpowers and relief from suffering had a price. By having access to anything they want with such ease, the X-Men, Alpha Flight, and humans lost all those things that made them special: their pain, their emotions, and most importantly, their creativity. They no longer had the power to dream or think up new ideas.

I fear it will be the same with A.I. As quick and cool as some of the things A.I. makes, what if the price we pay is the end of our own imaginations? What if all that’s been written, filmed, painted, or sung is all there will ever be? And all that’s left for us are variations on what’s already been done? We may be promised A.I. will never replace us, but what if we're looking at it the wrong way? If we let it take control, then we risk losing ourselves forever. Not because it takes over. But because we let it.

(It’s almost vampiric. By inviting it in, we render ourselves powerless. I learned that from “The Frog Brothers in The Lost Boys).

Sure, everything becomes easier… faster… we won't have to write emails, practice law, drive cars, fly planes, make movies or art, or sing songs. The danger then is that possibly everything becomes so easy, and so similar, that in our laziness we stop doing anything. Perhaps, we won't even have to do what is hardest, but almost most important and central to our humanity: finding and falling in love, having and raising children, creating new art, or forging new frontiers. What if the real danger of A.I. is not that it becomes deranged and murderous (presumably, if that happens we will all make like Linda Hamilton and Allison Williams and fight back), but rather that it just lulls us into giving up everything that makes us human in the first place? We might become fat, useless slobs like in the movie "Wall-E."

Which is why A.I. should always remain a tool that enhances but doesn't replace. And, more importantly, why we all should be grateful for the difficult things that we must do, the challenges we face, and the victories along the way, special to both individuals and society, that make each life unique and worth living.