Director Denies AI Involvement in 'stop! That! Train!' Film

WHO:

Fast Company - The film "Stop! That! Train!" stars RuPaul Charles as President Judy Gagwell.

Fast Company - Adam Shankman is the director of "Stop! That! Train!".

Fast Company - Acme AI & FX is a visual effects studio listed in the film's credits.

Fast Company - Gloria Cook is a user on Letterboxd who criticized the film.

WHAT:

Fast Company - "Stop! That! Train!" is described as a spiritual successor to disaster comedies like "Airplane!".

Fast Company - The film features several alumni from "RuPaul’s Drag Race".

Fast Company - Shankman stated, “Every shot in Stop! That! Train! was made by human hands!”.

Variety - Shankman called claims of AI use in the film “patently not true”.

Fast Company - Cook claimed the film contains “one of the most conspicuous uses of AI” she has seen.

WHERE:

Fast Company - The film is set to have a wide release.

WHEN:

Fast Company - "Stop! That! Train!" is scheduled for wide release on June 12, 2026.

WHY:

Fast Company - Cook expressed concern over the use of generative AI in the film, stating it affects queer artists like herself.

HOW:

Fast Company - Acme AI & FX contributed visual effects work to the film, with AI use limited to background workflow processes.

Fast Company - Shankman mentioned that hundreds of VFX artists worked on the film, ensuring no jobs were taken from human hands.

(UPDATED June 3, 2026 18:29 UTC)

The upcoming film "Stop! That! Train!" stars RuPaul Charles as President Judy Gagwell and is directed by Adam Shankman, who emphasizes that every shot was crafted by human hands, countering claims of AI involvement. Set for a wide release on June 12, 2026, the film is described as a spiritual successor to classic disaster comedies like "Airplane!" and features several alumni from "RuPaul’s Drag Race." However, Gloria Cook, a user on Letterboxd, has criticized the film, expressing concerns about the impact of generative AI on queer artists, despite Shankman's assertion that the visual effects were created by hundreds of artists with AI only used for background processes.