Danny Boyle Shares Why He Used AI for Maggie Thatcher in ‘Ink’ – Without Asking Her Estate and His Love for ‘Obsession’ and ‘Backrooms’

Director and producer Danny Boyle discussed his latest film, Ink, which traces Rupert Murdoch‘s rise on Fleet Street and takeover of the tabloid The Sun, and his film career at an event during the 70th edition of the BFI London Film Festival on Friday. And he shared some thoughts that surprised audience members.

The filmmaker talked to Puck‘s Matt Belloni in a wide-ranging discussion that was partially recorded for his The Town podcast.

Boyle recalled an encounter with Murdoch. “I met him, not for this project, but because Slumdog Millionaire … made him a lot of money,” he said. “[Fox Searchlight] were the studio that picked it up and made a huge amount of money,” so Boyle was invited to “a lunch party in a garden somewhere.” But he acknowledged: “I can’t remember [details], and it was an extremely uneventful meeting.”

Discussing the rise of AI, Boyle had some thoughts to share when asked if he sees the technology as an opportunity, a threat or something else. “It’s a part of the toolbox that the visual effects companies use now,” the creative offered. “It just is, and we used it very sparingly [in Ink], and we were very careful to make sure it didn’t replace anyone.”

The Ink team did, however, use AI to recreate late U.K. Prime Minister Margaret “Maggie” Thatcher’s face. “I didn’t want a Thatcher imitator because the points at which she appears in the film, it’s documented that she used to visit [The Sun editor] Larry Lamb’s office late at night after the edition had gone out, and they’d drink whiskey together,” Boyle said. “I didn’t want an impersonator. I wanted her to be it. Of course, we got an impersonator in to play the whole scene” and then used AI to put Thatcher’s face on her.”

In case you wonder if the filmmaker asked for any rights or flagged this, Boyle shared: “I got to be honest, I declined to ask the estate for permission to do that. I don’t think the estate of people like Margaret Thatcher should have control over our ability to insist on ideas in art about what her influence was on our lives. So that was very important to me.”

Boyle also discussed the issue of power in connection with technology giants. “The danger is when the newspapers are gone and the portals are just our screens,” the filmmaker argued. “Will those journalists be allowed to hold truth to power, because the power then will be [with] the tech giants who control these platforms. And obviously the rise of AI and replacing journalists with AI is another compounding factor of that.”

Asked about movies that really impressed him this year, Boyle shared: ”I loved Obsession and Backrooms, and we obviously really enjoyed The Odyssey. 
I’m really looking forward to Dune 3.”